Kyubi Unleashed
by DigiScanner-Shonen
Summary: A new monster threatens the ninja world and the only thing that can stop it is Kyubi! Will unleashing one terror stop another? Or will it just further doom all? NaruSaku NOT ABANDONED, JUST ON EXTENDED HIATUS. R
1. Disguises and Admittances

Disclaimer: I own none of the characters of Naruto, much as I wish I did. Well, wishing won't make it happen. Oh, this is gonna be my first attempt at romance and it'll be a NaruSaku fic so if you don't like, stay far away! And now, the story...  
  
Kyubi Unleashed  
  
By DigiScanner-Shonen  
  
Chapter 1: Disguises and Admittances  
  
It was peaceful in Konohagakure that day. The sun was shining, the sky was a brilliant blue, and there was happiness throughout the village; however, for Uzumaki Naruto, the infamous ninja with the demon fox within, it was too boring. Sure, he liked the peace, but he wanted something to liven things up.  
  
Maybe one of his pranks would do it. Nah, he'd given up pranks since he became a shinobi. Going to peek at the ladies bathhouse? Uh-uh, he'd done that too many times already. What could he do to make things less boring?  
  
Then he remembered Haruno Sakura, his crush, and how she was infatuated with Uchiha Sasuke, his rival. He remembered how back on the first day of him becoming a genin shinobi, he posed as Sasuke to get close to Sakura and almost kissed her. Maybe her opinion of him had changed and this time he'd actually kiss her. He smiled mischievously as he went to find Sasuke to take his shape again.  
  
*~*  
  
Uchiha Sasuke was training again, as usual, at his home at the edge of Konohagakure, to become better than his brother, Itachi. Sasuke was still trying to come to terms with Naruto. He was getting stronger and stronger all the time. Would he eventually surpass Sasuke and Itachi would go after him instead?  
  
That was Sasuke's greatest fear. To have someone surpass him and have Itachi deem as a worthy opponent. That's why he sold his soul to Orochimaru when he gave him the Curse Seal.  
  
But still, he did kind of admire how far Naruto had come since the days of the Academy. He remembered how Naruto thought he was dead during the fight with Haku in the Land of the Waves and how he went haywire trying to avenge Sasuke. All that power. Has he had it all this time? Sasuke wondered, Where did he get it? And how long did he have it?  
  
Before Sasuke could train and inquire further, a knock came at his door. Perfect, he thought, probably another girl trying to get him to go out with her.  
  
Sasuke reluctantly opened the door and was met with the smiling face of Uzumaki Naruto.  
  
"Hey, Sasuke," Naruto said, "Mind if I come in for a minute?"  
  
"Yes," he answered coolly, "I'm training and I don't want any visitors now. Go away, dunce."  
  
As Sasuke closed the door, Naruto's foot blocked the door, "I'm not gonna take no for an answer that easily!" Naruto burst in and activated his Kage Bushin no Jutsu.  
  
Sasuke had been through this before, no way he was going to fall for it again. As the clones attacked, Sasuke dodged and fought back.  
  
The original Naruto was going for a shuriken, when Sasuke spotted this and hit him. He actually hit the wall as Naruto and all his clones were gathered behind him. Sasuke was ready for whatever they had planned and grabbed a kunai just in case.  
  
What he wasn't ready for was Naruto did just then and there. He and his doppelgangers used their Sexy no Jutsu on Sasuke and in a moment, Narutos disguised as sexy women surrounded Sasuke.  
  
Is this one of his special techniques, Sasuke wondered as he suffered a nosebleed. He tried to look away, but there was another Naruto girl on every side of him. His nosebleed turned into a fierce river and Sasuke began to faint.  
  
"Ha! Couldn't beat my Sexy no Jutsu, couldja Sasuke?" he could hear Naruto say as he tied and gagged him like he did all those months ago. He vaguely saw a double of Sasuke and what was his voice saying, "Don't worry, it's only for an hour. I won't do much with your body, man."  
  
With that, Naruto/Sasuke walked out the door, leaving the real Sasuke trying to come to terms with what just happened. His downfall was Naruto posing as a naked woman? He'd never live this down for the rest of his life! He quickly untied himself and decided to follow Naruto/Sasuke to see what he was going to do.  
  
*~*  
  
Haruno Sakura was just relaxing at home, enjoying her bedroom, thinking of new ways to snatch her crush, Sasuke-kun. But all of her plans wouldn't work. She was just about to forget all about them and just have a quick nap when the doorbell rang.  
  
"I'll get it!" Sakura told her parents as she headed down the stairs and opened the door. She was met with a sight she only dreamed of.  
  
"Sasuke-kun!" she cried. He was actually here at her door! Just to see her! She was so happy she was going to faint. But she recomposed herself and asked him to come in.  
  
"Nice place you have, Sakura," Sasuke told her, "Can we go up to your room for a few minutes?"  
  
Sakura was going to go mad with happiness. The inner was practically partying 'til she dropped. Sakura happily led Sasuke up to her room and closed the door. Will Ino be jealous, she thought happily.  
  
"So, Sakura," Sasuke said as he sat on her bed, "I've been thinking...about Naruto."  
  
Hmph, she thought, always Naruto with this guy. Maybe she could get him to change the subject.  
  
"He's not such a bad guy, you know," Sasuke said, "I think he actually cares for you."  
  
"Him? Hah!" She laughed, "He doesn't care about me! He only wants to annoy me for the rest of his days. Stupid Naruto. He's the thorn in my side, Sasuke-kun, and you're the antidote. Only when I'm with you can I cope with him, Mr. Ramen-obsession."  
  
"Maybe he is stupid," Sasuke shrugged, "but I personally think he's quite handsome, and intelligent. He's already on the way to being as strong as me."  
  
"Oh, no one could be strong as you, Sasuke-kun," she smiled as she took a spot beside him, "or as handsome. You were always like that, even back at the Academy. Naruto's just childish and immature."  
  
"But, Naruto, don't you even think slightly better of him than you did before we graduated?" Sasuke asked her, "Even the slightest?"  
  
"All right, a bit," she admitted, "He's gotten pretty powerful over these last months, but some of his old habits remain, like his childish pranks and his annoyance to me. That's why I like you better, Sasuke-kun. You're not him."  
  
"Fine," he said as he got up, "Now I know how you really feel about me."  
  
"What?" Sakura asked. She didn't say all those things about Sasuke, it was Naruto. She followed him down the stairs and to the door.  
  
"I didn't say all those things about you, Sasuke-kun, it was the blonde- headed pain in the neck," she tried to persuade him.  
  
Sasuke was now in the street and Sakura was following him. She couldn't understand where he was going. She thought things were going well.  
  
"The blonde-headed pain in the neck," Sasuke began, as he dropped the illusion, "was me."  
  
"Naruto!"  
  
"Thanks for the admittance of the feelings, Sakura," he said as he walked off, "Wouldn't want to BOTHER you again."  
  
As Naruto walked off, Sakura tried to take in all that happened. Naruto, disguised as Sasuke, was let into her house to find out about her true feelings for him. She said all that bad stuff about him because she thought he was Sasuke-kun.  
  
Naruto could be a pain in the neck at times, but he was also very brave and powerful as well. She was only trying to impress Sasuke-kun with their equal loathing of Naruto. She must've really hurt Naruto with what she said. She really felt bad now.  
  
And the most painful thing was that he didn't call her "Sakura-chan". Just plain old Sakura.  
  
She went back to her room and instead of trying to think of ways to snatch Sasuke, she thought of ways trying to apologise to Naruto.  
  
*~*  
  
Sasuke was watching all this from a nearby tree. While he didn't like peeping into Sakura's room, it helped to find out what Naruto was doing with his image.  
  
He just wanted to find out about Sakura's feelings for him? Why do that, dunce? Sasuke wondered.  
  
He watched as Naruto trudged silently toward the ramen bar he loved to eat at and decided to give Naruto a piece of his mind.  
  
Naruto was just sitting down and ordering when Sasuke came.  
  
"Is that why you took my image, Naruto?" Sasuke asked, "Just to get Sakura's opinion of you?"  
  
"Hey!" Naruto fought back, "I really needed to know, all right? It was too quiet and I decided to use the peace to find out what she thought of me."  
  
"But you used MY appearance."  
  
"Well, duh! Every girl in the village has a thing for you and I figured you'd be the best choice to get to Sakura's inner feelings."  
  
"I never should have opened the door," Sasuke muttered, "And that stupid technique you used! What was it?"  
  
"That's my Sexy no Jutsu! How'd you like it, Sasuke the nosebleeder?"  
  
"Well, actually it was...NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!!"  
  
"So, you DID like it!"  
  
"Shut up, dunce! Just so you know, I won't fall for it again. I never fall for the same trick twice."  
  
"Sure," Naruto rubbed his hands in anticipation as his bowl of ramen came before him, "I'm sorry I took your image again but I really needed it. I won't take it again."  
  
"You better not or I'll personally make sure you never get a bowl of ramen ever again," Sasuke said as he left the restaurant.  
  
That should put him straight a bit, Sasuke thought, now back to training. He'd really have to push himself if Naruto could do something worse than that. He couldn't believe he fell for such an attack.  
  
And the scariest part was that Sasuke thought Naruto as a naked woman was attractive.  
  
*~*  
  
Even ramen couldn't help Naruto feel better about Sakura's feelings. He gulped down the rest of the ramen and decided to go back home and do something to take his mind off of her.  
  
As he walked home, he felt something within him stir. Kyubi, he thought, remembering the nine-tailed fox spirit within him. He quieted his mind and listened to the demon fox within him.  
  
It sounded troubled. And angry. Like something bad was coming. Maybe it's just because I ate the ramen too fast, Naruto thought, I always do that with ramen.  
  
Naruto continued on his way home, but couldn't forget Kyubi's stirrings. Whatever it was that Kyubi agitated over, if it made Kyubi that mad, it must be something really bad.  
  
And it was coming soon.  
  
TO BE CONTINUED!  
  
So, what do you think? Reviews please! Sorry it's so short. It's gonna get better, just trust me on this. It'll be more action as we go on. 


	2. Consultations of the Hokage

Disclaimer: I own none of the characters of Naruto who will appear in this part of the story. Also, if you like this, go check out my other Naruto story. More on that at the end. Now, the second chapter commences...  
  
Kyubi Unleashed  
  
By DigiScanner-Shonen  
  
Chapter 2: Consultations of the Hokage  
  
It was the next day and Team 7 was to have a rendezvous at the old bridge for new training exercises. It was early in the morning and a mist hung over Konohagakure. Sakura was the first to get there.  
  
She still couldn't get over what happened yesterday. What she had said to Naruto. How he was an annoyance to her and how she still couldn't stand him, even after all this time.  
  
She had gone through over and over in her mind what to say to Naruto to express her feelings of remorse. Now, she waited for the blonde genin to appear.  
  
What would happen if he didn't except the apology? Sakura thought. Would he hold that bitterness inside him for the rest of his life? What if her saying that pushed him off the edge and drove him to...  
  
Naruto showed up out of the mist as Sakura wondered. He took one look at her, gave a huff and turned away. He was still bitter. Couldn't he understand she felt awful about saying those things about him?  
  
There was silence between the two for a time that seemed like eternity. Sakura continued to look at him, as he gazed down to the underneath of the bridge.  
  
Her heart starting beating faster, her hands were shaking. She was nervous. She couldn't appear nervous to him. She had to apologise to him. She took in a deep breath and began to talk.  
  
"So," she started, "What'd you have for breakfast?"  
  
He kept silent.  
  
"Think it'll be sunny today?"  
  
The quietness continued.  
  
"Think Master Kakashi will show up early this time?"  
  
Still nothing. No response. This just made her more nervous and pained. This really hurt him, she thought, and it's all my fault. Time to stop the small talk.  
  
"Naruto..." His silence was torture to her, "I acted like a real jerk yesterday. I know things have been hard for you growing up all this time and that my remarks probably made it worse, but I want you to know I'm sorry. Can you forgive me?"  
  
"Hmf," he smirked, "Forgive you for what happened? Sure," For a moment, Sakura thought everything between them would be okay again. Then he continued, "but only after you understand."  
  
"Understand what, Naruto?"  
  
"Do you know how I felt when you told me that?" He turned to face her, "Do you know how much it hurt when you plainly admitted to my face that you hate my guts? And why? Just to impress your 'Sasuke-kun'?"  
  
"You don't know the pain I grew up with, Sakura. You would never know. Being all alone, all the time. Going to places and being frowned upon. Saying hi and having a back turned to you. Hating you for what they see you as for crimes you didn't commit. Only one person treated me with respect. Empathy. Even love."  
  
"That was Master Iruka, back at the Academy. When he took me out for ramen, I felt so happy. I started to depend on him for any kinds of praise, attention, and respect. I'd do anything for him, even die," Naruto's voice was starting to crack, "When I graduated, I knew I had to start to depend on myself. But I found someone else who I thought could treat me the same way. Who'd see me for who I really am. Who I'd die fighting for."  
  
"Who was it?" Sakura asked.  
  
"You, Sakura," he admitted as he moved closer to Sakura, "At least, until yesterday. I was hoping you'd see me the way I do. As a person, with feelings, thoughts and a dream to have respect. I did act kind of stupid, yes I confess, but it was to get your attention. I only wanted to please you and have you care for me the way I wanted you to. But everything I did, you overlooked. You dwarfed it. Always looked past me and to him."  
  
Sakura knew whom he meant.  
  
"It was always about Sasuke with you. Sasuke-kun this, Sasuke-kun that, Sasuke-kun, Sasuke-kun, Sasuke-kun. It pissed me off a lot. I never understood WHY you liked him. Maybe because he was strong. He was the strongest of all of us back then. I started to think, what if I was strong like him? Maybe then you'd start to notice me and, heck, maybe even like me."  
  
"That's why I hated him. Because he had your attention. Something I wanted, but only if I worked hard. So when we all became Master Kakashi's students, I swore to myself that I'd surpass Sasuke and gain your respect, attention, care. So through all that's happened with us as a team, my one driving force to never give up, become better that Sasuke and receive the Hokage title, was you."  
  
Sakura never knew how much she meant to Naruto until now. She felt low, now. Really low.  
  
"But what you did to me yesterday was unforgivable. You said you hated my guts. That I annoyed you. That the only thing that mattered to you and that made my presence bearable to you was someone else. Tell me, Sakura," he said as he pushed his face right into hers, "how do you think I felt? HOW DO YOU THINK I FELT, DAMMIT!!"  
  
Naruto had tears in his eyes now. He had been so badly scarred by her. Sakura felt like she was going to cry, too. What she had done to him was inexcusable. And in his eyes, unforgivable.  
  
Naruto turned away and went back to his part of the bridge. Sakura collapsed and let tears flow. How could she have done this to him? How could she have known she meant everything to him? She was a real jerk.  
  
Sakura cried. And cried. She continued to cry until Sasuke and Kakashi showed up to begin the exercises and she had to pull herself together.  
  
*~*  
  
Training was over a few hours later and Naruto felt slightly better after venting some steam to Sakura on the bridge. But it still wasn't enough to get him to take his mind off her. He deep down really did want to forgive Sakura, but part of his mind kept telling him what she had done to him was unforgivable. He continued back to his house and collapsed onto the bed.  
  
Did I really do the right thing, just telling her plainly how much she hurt me? Naruto thought. Maybe it was a bad idea. She probably must think I'm just another infatuated idiot like that Rock Lee. Maybe I never should've disguised myself as Sasuke to get close to Sakura and none of this would have happened. But wait, I saw the look in her eyes when I told her.  
  
She was saddened. She was apologetic. She was caring. She was trying to tell me she was sorry and she cared about me, but I threw it in her face. I made Sakura feel like a real heel, then. But that was the way she made me feel, so that's that. But can I really leave her that way, sad and sorry? What should I do? Leave her be and forget her or forgive her and try to be her friend again?  
  
Naruto was really confused on this matter. He never really did understand girls and this just made him even more puzzled. So when in doubt, he consulted Kyubi.  
  
"Kyubi, I need your help," Naruto said as he quieted his mind again, "You saw what Sakura did to me and what I told her. Should I forgive her or forget about her?"  
  
He listened for the demon kitsune's answer. Being inside Naruto had made Kyubi soften a bit. It now understood the concept of many things that Naruto had experienced, but it still wouldn't refrain from its old habits like thoughts of destroying the shinobis who imprisoned him in the boy. Naruto heard Kyubi's answer in a series of growls. He translated them into an answer:  
  
"Forgive her. Forget her. They're both good options, but only you can decide on that matter. I can't help you."  
  
"Thank you, Kyubi," Naruto said as Kyubi turned silent. Naruto was quiet for a moment and then found his answer. But in order to know it was truly the right one, he'd need to have counselling from another girl before making the decision final. He knew just who to talk to.  
  
Naruto bolted out the door to find who he needed to speak with.  
  
*~*  
  
Another quiet day, Tsunade thought as she strolled through the Village Garden, in Konohagakure. We're still carrying the scars of what happened during Orochimaru's attack, but we get by. I thank the previous Hokage for delaying Orochimaru's reign, but I wonder how long this peace will last before some other force strikes our home...  
  
"Tsunade!"  
  
The Hokage turned around and was met with the blonde-haired boy who vowed to become the next Hokage. He was all sweaty and his face was as red as a tomato.  
  
"It's Hokage or ma'am now, Naruto," Tsunade told him, "You can't call me that in public."  
  
"I'm sorry, ma'am," Naruto said to her, "but I really need to talk to you."  
  
"What's it about?"  
  
"Well, there's this girl..."  
  
"Oh. Got hit by Cupid's Arrow? Come to my house, we'll talk over tea."  
  
*~*  
  
Tsunade's house in Konohagakure was small. Kind of like Naruto's place. There was peeling blue wallpaper lining the walls; the floor was a bit messy and uncleaned; moreover, it had a strange odour that Naruto couldn't identify entirely. The place was a bachelor pad, so everything was in one room. The couch they sat on was bumpy, the kitchen was full of uncleaned dishes, the cabinets had papers all over them and closet could use some work. She was more of an eating-out person, not a "live at home" person, she had told Naruto.  
  
"So let me go over this one more time," Tsunade said as she sipped her tea and placed the cup on the coffee table by their feet, "You disguise yourself as another guy, who this girl really likes, to get close to her and get her opinion of you. After she badmouths you, you drop your disguise and leave her, now knowing it was you. Then, today, when she tries to apologise to you, you throw it in her face. Hmm, you're a real romantic."  
  
"Whatever. I wrestled with myself earlier on whether to forgive her or leave her be. I tried to talk to Kyubi, but it wouldn't give a straight opinion. Left me to make up my own mind," Naruto told the Hokage, "I decided on an opinion, but needed a girl's perspective before going through with it."  
  
"Which is...?"  
  
"Forgiving her and apologising myself for doing what I did earlier."  
  
"Well, of course you should go with that. Why'd you need to see me for, then?"  
  
"Because I wasn't sure that she'd let me apologise after what we both did."  
  
"After what you told her about her being your whole world? I think she'll let both of you forgive each other. Especially since you saw the sorrow in her eyes when you told her everything."  
  
"All right, I'll do it. I'm going to forgive her. I hope now she understands how much it hurt to have someone you care deeply for shun you. Maybe she'll care about me more now the way I care about her! Thanks, Tsunade! Oop!" Naruto said as he got up and covered his mouth after he realised that he called the Hokage by her name.  
  
"It's okay Naruto. I'll let it slide just this once. Go on and find that girl. Find her and forgive her. Just promise me one thing..."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Let me know how it went. This little situation of love brings back memories..."  
  
"Uh, yeah...Gotta go!" Naruto said as he raced out the door in search of Sakura.  
  
Kids these days, she thought as she sipped her tea again, never quite know how to handle love. Tsunade rose up and put the dishes away. This place needed a clean up. She was just about to start when a knock-knock came from the door.  
  
"Yes?" She asked as she opened the door.  
  
"Lord Hokage!" the visitors bowed. There were three of them. Why would they visit her at her own house?  
  
"There's been some strange activity in the Land Hidden in the Clouds," one of them said.  
  
"What kind of strange activity?"  
  
"There have been reports of destruction of nearby villages. Men, women, children, all killed. It started just a few days ago," another stated.  
  
"What's happening there?"  
  
"We're not quite sure," the third answered, "But we ask permission to go and investigate. If it started there and continues, the whole world could be in peril."  
  
"Do it. Report back to me in three days."  
  
"Yes, Lord Hokage!" the three ninjas saluted, then disappeared.  
  
Destruction in the Land Hidden in the Clouds? That's practically at the border, Tsunade thought, I just hope that it's something that can be averted easily before something bad happens.  
  
Tsunade closed the door and looked around her messy house. They could have come in and saw how messy she was! If she was to be Hokage, she'd have to make not only herself, but also her home presentable. She took in a big breath and began to clean up. Two thoughts always remained on her mind. One was what the disaster is and how big it will be if it continues. The other was how Naruto was going to do with the girl he and Tsunade talked about.  
  
TO BE CONTINUED!  
  
I just love reviews. Lets me know that people enjoy what I'm doing. I want more. Oh! And before I forget, I created another Naruto fic, "Wind". Yes, it's a songfic with the song from the first ending of Naruto in it. It was my first Naruto story so if you like this, you'll probably like that one, as well. Please review it, as well. 


	3. Can You Forgive Me?

Disclaimer: Again, I don't own any of the characters from Naruto, even though I really wish I did. Oh well. So without further adieu, on to the story.  
  
Kyubi Unleashed  
  
By DigiScanner-Shonen  
  
Chapter 3: "Can You Forgive Me?"  
  
Haruno Sakura had been locked up in her room since coming home from training with her teammates. She had been crying into her pillow, remembering all that Naruto had told her. She meant everything to him and to hurt him so deeply...  
  
Sakura turned over on her bed and looked out the window. The brilliant sunset coloured sky outside to her was all in shades of grey. Maybe she could apologise to him again? No, he'd still be bitter after what she did. Could she just leave him with that big a wound inside him?  
  
"Sakura," a voice came from downstairs, "Can you get the door? I'm busy cooking dinner."  
  
She really didn't feel like it, but Sakura got up off of her bed and went downstairs to get the door, only to please her mother. She was greeted with a darkening street, nightfall was almost here. Lamps were starting to light Konohagakure and people were heading home, but Sakura didn't notice them. She looked around for the knocker, but there was no one. She was about to close the door when she found a shuriken with a note lodged into the middle of the door.  
  
She took the shuriken off, headed upstairs to her room and read the note quietly.  
  
"Sakura," it began, "I know its been tough for you today, after what was told to you. If you want to know if he's still bitter, go to the park at midnight tonight. Wait on the bench underneath the trees. Everything will make sense when you do this. He'll wait for you."  
  
There was no signature. Who would know about what Naruto told her besides her? She hadn't told anyone. But she planned to follow the instructions and go to the park at midnight. She'd wait on the bench underneath the trees.  
  
She'd see who this mystery note sender was.  
  
*~*  
  
The lamps lit the path in Konohagakure Park with a yellow glow. The sky was clear and you could see all the stars. Leaves rustled as a light wind grazed the trees. It gave off a kind of eerie feeling. Between this and finding out who the mystery note was from, Sakura was very uneasy. She sat on the bench, slightly shivering from the cold.  
  
Her knees were shaking with anticipation and her stomach twisted in anxiety. I should have brought a coat, she shivered as she looked up at the stars. She had always liked looking at the stars on clear nights like this. They were so beautiful, each and every time she saw them. Her father once told her that the stars wrote destinies within their patterns.  
  
Was it written in the stars that she would scar Naruto with her words and she'd later regret it after knowing that he loved her with all his heart? Sakura thought. Maybe it was also written in the stars that she'd never find love.  
  
Sakura returned to earth and looked down at her own two feet. She shivered again and wished this mystery person would hurry up and reveal himself. The cold was getting to her. Maybe the person was chronologically challenged...  
  
She felt sudden warmth as a jacket covered her shoulders. She turned around to find the person who put the jacket on her. There was no one. She took off the jacket and tried to identify it. It was hard to tell what colour it was since the lights gave off a yellowish kind of tint. What she did find was that it had a furry collar. And it had on the left shoulder a spiral symbol. From her guess, the jacket was also yellow. This jacket could only belong to...  
  
"Hey Sakura."  
  
Sakura turned to her right and was greeted with the sight of Uzumaki Naruto, without his jacket. It seemed now he was the one shivering. She motioned to give back the jacket, but Naruto motioned for her to keep it on.  
  
"Cold, huh?" Sakura asked.  
  
"Yeah," Naruto replied, teeth chattering.  
  
There was silence between them, neither quite knowing what to say to the other. They'd been through a lot together as a team, but not as individuals. The stars twinkled above the pair as Sakura drew in a breath to talk to Naruto again.  
  
"Naruto, I truly am sorry for what happened yesterday. I never meant to hurt you, but my obsession with Sasuke-kun..." she talked quietly, "I just hope you can forgive me for what I said to you. Can you forgive me for what I did?"  
  
"No, Sakura," Naruto shook his head and Sakura felt that he'd never forgive her ever, "I'm the one that should be asking for forgiveness."  
  
"What?" Sakura wondered.  
  
"I lashed out at you after what happened and told you how you were my whole world. It was too much, too fast for you, I think. I never should have made you feel like a heel when I said that. Especially since you were trying to apologise to me. I'm the one who should be asking 'Can you forgive me for what I did.'"  
  
They both looked into each other's eyes and saw what they both felt. Embarrassment. Sadness. Joy. And forgiveness. It was Sakura who answered first.  
  
"Of course, I forgive you, Naruto," she grinned, "How can I stay mad at you when you pour out your heart to me?"  
  
"Yeah. And I forgive you for saying all those harsh things to me," Naruto smiled back, "Well, now that that's over and dealt with..."  
  
Sakura put her head on Naruto's shoulder. They looked up at the night sky together. What she thought she felt with Sasuke was now with Naruto. She felt happy and safe in his company. Sure he was rude, loud, obnoxious and self-centred at times, but he was also kind, determined and empathetic as well. She had only hated him because everyone else did and to impress Sasuke. Now she didn't. She couldn't understand why everyone in Konohagakure didn't see the other side of the blonde shinobi.  
  
"Naruto?"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Why does everyone in the village hate you anyway?" Sakura asked, "It seems to me that everyone hates you for no particular reason. Is there one?"  
  
Naruto pulled back and looked down to the ground. Sakura felt ashamed now. Did she just hurt him even more after they just patched things up?  
  
"I don't want to tell you. You'd just shun me like everyone else does," Naruto told her quietly, "And after we just forgave each other, if I told you, you might hate me again. And I don't want that, not after everything I said to you earlier."  
  
Sakura put a hand on his cheek and drew his face to look at hers. "I could never hate you again, Naruto. You've just shown me that there's another side to you that everyone else just doesn't see. And I like it."  
  
Naruto smiled and blushed a little. So did Sakura. They seemed to lean inwards toward each other. As they got closer, their eyelids closed. They were almost at the point that their lips would meet...  
  
"Hey! What's going on over there?" A voice yelled. There was some barking from where the voice came from.  
  
"Crap! I forgot about the village's new security!" Naruto cursed under his breath and he and Sakura moved into the trees, "Let's move this somewhere else."  
  
They sat in a small bush to hide themselves from the guard and his dogs. It seemed to pass over them, leaving them.  
  
"Now, where were we?" Naruto asked.  
  
"Um, I think I better go home," Sakura admitted slowly as Naruto cursed under his breath again, "It IS late."  
  
"Yeah," Naruto whispered sadly, "But will I see you again tomorrow?"  
  
"We've got practice together idiot," Sakura gave him a playful punch, "Of course we'll see each other again."  
  
"Great! See you in the morning then, Sakura-chan," Naruto smiled at her.  
  
"You bet on it, Naruto," Sakura started, happy that Naruto was calling her "Sakura-chan" again. She then moved slowly to his ear as if to whisper something. She finished with, "...-kun."  
  
She kissed his cheek and ran off for home. Naruto stared in the direction she went, eyes wide. He slowly raised his hand to the place where Sakura kissed it and moved his hand down it slowly.  
  
"Naruto-kun..." He could hear Sakura still say in his mind. He could still feel her lips pressed against his cheek. He was about to burst with joy.  
  
"YYYEEEAAAHHH!!!!"  
  
"What's going on over there?" The guard's voice came again as the dogs' barking grew louder and louder.  
  
"Dammit!"  
  
*~*  
  
It was three days after the Hokage had sent the ninjas who came to her house to the Land Hidden In the Clouds that a report was sent back. The report was with one single ninja, heavily injured on the brink of death. Tsunade and the Konohagakure Council were in the hospital room. Tsunade used her healing powers to try and help him talk and feel batter, but the wounds were fatal. He wouldn't last long, even with Tsunade's ability in medical ninjutsu.  
  
"Now, what happened?" One of the council members asked, "And where are the other two?"  
  
The ninja breathed heavily. He moved a half-open eye around the room, the other was permanently shut. His body had large bruises, gashes, scrapes on it and Tsunade tried her best to keep him alive long enough for him to tell everything. He coughed up blood before he began speaking.  
  
"Three days ago...Land Hidden in Clouds...cough...investigation of disaster that Hokage sent us to...look at...pant...arrived at a destroyed village...wheeze...buildings demolished, blood spilled, bodies everywhere...dear Lord...asked survivors where disaster was...sniff...don't hurt me..." the ninja tried to explain.  
  
"What's wrong with him?" another council member interrupted.  
  
"Remember, he doesn't have much longer to live," Tsunade told the Council, "He's doing his best to tell us what happened."  
  
"...tracks found in ground...large...trailed after it...followed tracks...no...stopped halfway in the desert...sob...ambush...gigantic...tried to flee, oh Lord...tried to flee...other ninjas, killed...barely made it back...cough...it was terrible..."  
  
"What was it?" Tsunade asked.  
  
"It was...it was..." the ninja tried to tell them, but his strength was fading, "...horrible, huge...slaughtered...no...sob...it was...it was..."  
  
"What was it?" Tsunade asked again. But the ninja could tell no more.  
  
"WHAT WAS IT?" A council member demanded.  
  
Tsunade bowed her head in silence, shedding a few tears, then recomposed herself to talk to the Council.  
  
"Well, we have some information on what it was, but it's still not enough!" The Head Councilman said, "We need MORE information. We can't just deal with a force that we don't even know is!"  
  
"Well, what do you suggest?" Tsunade asked.  
  
"Another information gathering mission. Those three were Chuunins, am I right? Send a Jounin. No wait, in fact, send Jiraiya. He'll tell us exactly what we want to know about this disaster."  
  
"What disaster?" came a voice.  
  
It was Jiraiya, standing in the hallway, watching all that happened, somewhat bemused. "There's been a disturbance in the Land Hidden in the Clouds. Our only clues don't fit," Tsunade filled him in, "We need you to go and see exactly what's going on there."  
  
"What's in it for me?" Jiraiya asked, "I'm kind of busy right now. I was going to take Naruto away for some more training in the woods in a couple of days."  
  
"You'll be next in line for Hokage," the Head Councilman said.  
  
"WHAT? That pervert the 6th Hokage?" Tsunade expressed her discontentment.  
  
"Nope," Jiraiya shook his head and Tsunade breathed a sigh of relief.  
  
"You'll have done the country a great service."  
  
"Uh-uh."  
  
"We'll make you an Official Council member."  
  
"Don't want it."  
  
"Fine," the man sighed, "We'll allow you to peek at the ladies all you want and grant you pardon for every occasion."  
  
"Consider this assignment taken care of! I'm off!" Jiraiya cheered as he vanished to begin the mission.  
  
"He never changes," Tsunade smiled and shook her head.  
  
"Let's hope he makes it against this mysterious foe and gathers the information we need," a Councilman said.  
  
"Hey, he's one of the Three Legendary Ninjas of the Leaf. If anyone can survive and give us info, it's him," Tsunade replied. She was sure he could do it.  
  
At least, that's what her head told her.  
  
*~*  
  
A day later, he was in the Cloud Country, following the trail of the disastrous mystery.  
  
Jiraiya didn't want to face the same fate as the Chuunins, but he was sure he could handle it. After all, he WAS Jiraiya of the Legendary Three. He'd get to the bottom of this. Tsunade would be so happy when he'd report the information. Maybe I'll score some points with her to boot, he thought, and then perhaps we'll go a little further, heh heh.  
  
The tracks had gone farther since the attack on the Chuunins. It had stopped to destroy a couple more villages, but other than that it kept on moving. It was almost at the border of the country and was posed to step foot into a neighbouring country. Unless Jiraiya could accurately gain information to help stop it soon, the whole world could be like this.  
  
Fresh marks were made only an hour ago, Jiraiya noted as he ran alongside them. The tracks darted off to the side and then stopped. Strange, thought the white-haired ninja of legend. Why would they just stop suddenly? Especially when they were just made?  
  
He then heard a sound. Normally it would be impossible for ordinary shinobi to hear something like it, but Jiraiya was sharply trained for it. It sounded like a large, angry growl. And judging from the volume and distance, it was behind him, about a kilometre off. Jiraiya could only imagine what it came from.  
  
He turned around and saw a speck on the horizon. And it was getting bigger and bigger with enormous speed. As soon as the speck got to a decent size to see what it exactly was, Jiraiya was shocked, yet amazed at the same time. There was no way that that was...  
  
But yet it was and it was still heading for him.  
  
Okay, if that's the way you want to play it, Jiraiya thought as he prepared himself for battle as the mysterious disaster that arrived only a few short days ago charged toward him and Jiraiya sprinted equally as fast towards the thing, Let's see what you got.  
  
And all at once, it began.  
  
TO BE CONTINUED!  
  
As always, please review. I appreciate reviews for the story. Next chapter equally as good as this one. Look for it soon! Oh and please check out my other Naruto story, "Wind". Yes, it's based on the song from the first ending of the show. I'm planning on redoing it soon, so read it now in it's first form! 


	4. Reactions

Disclaimer: Again, I do not own any of the characters of Naruto. But I don't, so this fic'll have to do. For those of you who like the story, thanks for sticking by me for so long with your reviews. And now, I give you the forth chapter...  
  
Kyubi Unleashed  
  
By DigiScanner-Shonen  
  
Chapter 4: Reactions  
  
Uchiha Sasuke still couldn't believe it. Yet here it was. His teammates, Uzumaki Naruto and Haruno Sakura seemed to be interested in each other. Romantically interested. Sasuke was at a loss for words when, after training, he saw the two walk off together, no arguments or anything. And they were HAND IN HAND.  
  
Sasuke would've expected Sakura to go for better. She had been extremely interested in him for the longest time, but for her to just go all over Naruto all of a sudden? Sakura still called him "Sasuke-kun" but just not with enough feeling anymore. Sasuke felt a weird twinge of anger at Naruto just then.  
  
Was it jealousy? Was Sasuke jealous of Naruto getting Sakura's attention when back in the old days she couldn't care less? No. No that couldn't be it, Sasuke thought as he walked through the streets of Konohagakure. It felt more like a deep feeling of sorrow that he had felt all his life. Loneliness.  
  
Sakura had stuck by him during all their missions. She mourned for him when they were in the Wave Country and everyone thought he was dead. She held him back from destroying the other ninjas in the Chuunin Exam with his new Curse Seal powers. She had cheered him on in the Chuunin Tournament. Sakura had done a lot for him and all Sasuke ever did was brush her off.  
  
That was it. Sasuke was feeling loneliness. And it was because of Sakura now being with Naruto.  
  
It was another reason for Sasuke to loathe Naruto. He had Sakura's attention, Itachi's targeting and it seemed he was more powerful than Sasuke. Again, Naruto had all that power that seemed to surpass Sasuke. Where did he get it?  
  
Sasuke walked into a bookstore. He wasn't really in the mood to buy anything, but then he spotted it. It was a small scroll next to a bookcase. It had the title "How to Unleash Your True Potential". Sasuke grabbed it and asked the cashier how much it was. He replied that it had no price on it since it wasn't in the catalogue, but Sasuke could keep it since he found it. Sasuke dashed home in anticipation of reading the scroll.  
  
This was it. This was how he could unleash his power. He'd again be stronger than Naruto. He'd again be the target of Itachi. He'd again be Sakura's idol. And all he had to do was one thing after he read the scroll.  
  
Defeat Uzumaki Naruto.  
  
*~*  
  
It had been an idea of Gai-sensei's to train with other groups to further the development of the chakra. So Rock Lee and his team were training together with Ino, Shikamaru and Choji in a large field. Lee's team would show Ino's how to further taijutsu abilities and Ino's team would shoe Lee's how to use chakra to make their techniques more powerful.  
  
It was about noon when Choji said it.  
  
"I'm STARVING..."  
  
"Choji, you're always starving," Shikamaru halfheartedly said.  
  
"But I AM! I'm famished! I can't go on without food!"  
  
"Well, it is noon and we break for lunch at that time. And I'm starving, too..." Ino told the others.  
  
"All right, fine. We'll break for lunch," Lee announced, "but then we go right back to training."  
  
"Great! I have this real hankering for ramen! To the Ichikago Ramen Bar we go!" Choji cheered as he marched off in the direction of the noodle joint.  
  
"He never changes," Ino sighed, chasing after her teammate.  
  
"Neji, you coming?" Lee asked as he, Tenten and Shikamaru started going off.  
  
"No. I'm going to stay and train a bit more. Hinata's going there for lunch and you know how she and I get along..."  
  
"Fine, you wait here and train some more. We'll be back in about an hour," Tenten said.  
  
"Agreed. But Tenten..."  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Can you bring me back some ramen?"  
  
"Of course! See you then!" With that the three ninjas were off.  
  
*~*  
  
Hyuuga Hinata sat down and was enjoying her lunch when Choji, Ino, Rock Lee, Tenten and Shikamaru came in to eat. Hinata noticed them right away.  
  
"Oh! You're...Neji's teammates...aren't you?" Hinata asked Lee and Tenten.  
  
"Yeah! He sends his regards," Tenten replied as she ordered some ramen, "How's your team doing?"  
  
"They're...um...good," Hinata whispered, "We were doing training excersises when I got hungry. Um...I guess that's why...you're all here?"  
  
"Uh huh," Choji demanded, "Where's my ramen? I'm withering away to NOTHING here!"  
  
"Hold on, hold on," the bar owner said as he cooked up some noodles for everybody while Choji grumbled.  
  
"Maybe Sasuke-kun will come by to eat with me..." Ino dreamily said, "Wouldn't that be great, Shikamaru?"  
  
It was Shikamaru's turn to grumble. "It's always Sasuke with you, Ino. Why don't you think about someone OTHER than Sasuke for a change?"  
  
"Like Sakura-chan..." Rock Lee said as he too fell into a little dream, thinking of Sakura.  
  
"Sakura? No way! That pink-haired mess of a ninja isn't worth a thought of mine! And there's no way that she'll get my Sasuke-kun, even if they're on the same team. Sasuke-kun's nowhere near interested in her," Ino told the others, "She'll end up with some loser like that Uzumaki Naruto kid! He's absolutely the worst! I can see it now! Naruto and Sakura, the happy loser couple!"  
  
"Yeah, we're happy, but we're far from losers," a voice said.  
  
Everyone turned around and to their surprise, Uzumaki Naruto and Haruno Sakura walked into the bar and took a seat.  
  
"Na-Naruto-kun..." Hinata blushed.  
  
"Sakura-chan!" Lee almost sang.  
  
"Hey Hinata...guys...Thick Brows," Naruto smirked.  
  
"Naruto-kun, be nice..." Sakura told him.  
  
"All right, Sakura-chan. HEY! Can we get a couple of bowls of ramen over here?" Naruto asked.  
  
"Yes, yes, I'll be a minute," the bar owner replied as he gave the orders to Lee and the others.  
  
"Wait a second..." Lee said with eyes wide, "Sakura-chan did you just call him...'Naruto...-kun?'"  
  
"Yeah! Jealous, Thick Brows?"  
  
"But...but...but..." Lee couldn't believe what he heard.  
  
"HA! I knew it! Sakura IS with Naruto! I guess that means that Sasuke-kun's all mine!" Ino squealed.  
  
"Sure, you can have him," Sakura told her simply as Naruto and Sakura's order of ramen came.  
  
"Wha?" Ino gasped, "This is some kind of dream, isn't it? Sakura just said I could have Sasuke-kun and she isn't doing anything about it! Somebody pinch me! OW!"  
  
"Well, you asked to be pinched..." Shikamaru chuckled.  
  
"Naruto-kun...when...did you and...Sakura..." Hinata whispered quietly as she slowly slurped up some ramen.  
  
"It was a couple days ago. I could hardly believe it myself! I knew something good would happen to me soon!" Naruto cheered as he began to devour his food.  
  
"Sakura-chan...why did...you...and him...with the...how..." Lee sobbed.  
  
"I know it seems strange, Lee-san, but it's what I want. I guess it's what I always wanted," Sakura told him, "To have someone I cared deeply for feel the same way towards me. I thought I had it with Sasuke-kun but it turns out it's with Naruto-kun."  
  
"Well, I'm happy for you Sakura," Tenten smiled as she ordered another bowl of ramen to take to Neji.  
  
"So am I! Now Sasuke-kun is all mine! HA HA HA!" Ino laughed loudly as Shikamaru again grumbled.  
  
"AH! That was good! Can we have seconds?" Choji wondered.  
  
"No, we're going back to training," Shikamaru told him as he grabbed Choji who was longing for another bowl and a laughed-crazed Ino and dragged them out of the bar back to training.  
  
"I guess we'll be going too. See you later Sakura, Naruto, Hinata," Tenten said as she grabbed Neji's order and took a sorrowful Rock Lee by the collar and made him walk beside her. He was still sobbing about Sakura and Naruto's new relationship.  
  
"Naruto-kun...um..." Hinata began. She really didn't know what to say to her crush.  
  
"Yeah, Hinata?" Naruto asked as he downed the last bit of his ramen.  
  
"Ah...um...I'm really...happy for you...and Sakura-chan..."  
  
"Thanks, Hinata."  
  
"Yeah..." Hinata sadly said as she looked down to the floor.  
  
"Something wrong, Hinata?" Sakura asked.  
  
"No, Sakura-chan. I'm...fine. I'm not hungry anymore...I'm just...gonna go back to training..." Hinata said as she got off her stool and walked out.  
  
"All right. Bye Hinata!" Naruto waved.  
  
"Bye..." Hinata nervously waved back. She was a bit heartbroken that Naruto had gotten together with Sakura, but she was happy for him. At least Naruto- kun's happy, Hinata thought, that's the important thing. Even if Naruto was with someone else, at least he was happy.  
  
Hinata walked back to her group and when they asked her what happened, she said nothing. Unbeknowst to her teammates, Hinata shed a few tears.  
  
Whether they were for happiness or sadness was a secret only Hinata would ever know.  
  
*~*  
  
"So I hear Naruto's found himself a girlfriend," Iruka said as he sat with Tsunade in the Hokage Office. He was here to talk about Naruto and how he was doing since Kakashi was off training by himself, and Tsunade was the only other one close to him other than Jiraiya.  
  
"Yes, he's doing quite well," Tsunade told him as she sorted through some papers on her desk, "Could you hand me that pen, Iruka?"  
  
"Yes, Hokage-sama. I couldn't be happier that Naruto found another who cared for him deeply," Iruka replied as he handed the Hokage a pen.  
  
"I know. Great thing, love..." Tsunade said silently as she remembered her old boyfriend. How she wished he hadn't died on that mission. If only she could've done more for him...  
  
"Hokage-sama?"  
  
"Hmm? Oh, sorry. I got lost in thought. Anyway, you teach at the Ninja Academy?"  
  
"Yes, I'm Head Teacher there. Right now I'm personally handling Konohamaru, the grandson of you predecessor, the third Hokage."  
  
"Yes. And how is he doing?"  
  
"He's just like Naruto was when he attended the Academy. Not too bright, struggling with certain ninjutsu and trying to be the class clown. He even has a special jutsu that Naruto taught him personally. Konohamaru has pulled it once or twice on me."  
  
"What jutsu?"  
  
"It's one that Naruto made up. He calls it the 'Sexy no Jutsu'."  
  
"The What-jutsu?"  
  
"I know. That's how I first reacted, too. Basically, when Naruto or Konohamaru uses it, they become a very, very attractive nude woman. And any males in the vicinity who see it get severe nosebleeds," Iruka chuckled, remembering how his students had used it.  
  
"Why are you laughing?"  
  
"Well, just picture Naruto or Konohamaru using that and imagine the reaction of all the males in the Village."  
  
Tsunade thought. And laughed. "You're right. That is pretty funny," Tsunade said in-between laughs, "I think Naruto used it on Jiraiya once. And if you know Jiraiya like I do..."  
  
"No, I don't. But how is the only good male member of the Legendary Leaf Ninjas?"  
  
"Tired," a voice came. Tsunade and Iruka turned around and saw Jiraiya standing in the doorway, holding his side, looking badly battered and bruised.  
  
"Jiraiya! What in the world?" Tsunade gaped.  
  
"Long story."  
  
"We've got time," Iruka said simply as he rushed to help the legendary shinobi in. He placed Jiraiya on the couch lying down and pulled up a seat next to Tsunade.  
  
"Jiraiya, tell me, what did this to you?" Tsunade asked her friend.  
  
"It was that disaster you sent me to investigate in the Cloud Country. It put up a hell of a fight," Jiraiya groaned, "Water, please. I've got a major headache..."  
  
Tsunade got up and got a glass of water for the white-haired ninja. "Can you tell me what happened in your fight with it?"  
  
"Not much to tell. It was big, mean and vicious. I never thought I'd see another one in my time. Even pulled out Gama-Bunta to help fight but he was no match. We both got a severe beating. Those ninjas you send before were like ants to humans. I was kind of like a, well, TOAD to it," Jiraiya told them as he sipped some water from his glass while Tsunade used some of her medical jutsu to heal a couple of his more gruesome wounds.  
  
"What WAS it?" Iruka asked.  
  
"..."  
  
"Jiraiya, please?" Tsunade added.  
  
"...I don't want to tell you. It's not your problem."  
  
"Jiraiya, as long as it presents a threat to the country and the ninja world, it IS my problem. I am Hokage of the Hidden Leaf Country and I order you to tell me what it was," Tsunade demanded gently, "Now please."  
  
"All right I'll tell. But only one thing you need to know about it."  
  
"Why can't you tell me all of it?"  
  
"I'm not entirely sure of it myself. It used something on me to block stuff of it from my memory."  
  
"All right, just the one thing, then. Now, what is it?"  
  
Jiraiya paused and closed his eyes, like he was trying hard to remember something. Tsunade and Iruka leaned in and waited for his response. Jiraiya's eyes opened and with two words, left a feeling of dread, fear and uncertainness.  
  
"A monster..."  
  
TO BE CONTINUED!  
  
Again, please review! It lets me know that people like what I'm doing. More reviews means more chapters sooner! And check out my other Naruto story, "Wind". It's suffering in the way of reviews so I need reviews for that desperately. 


	5. Preparations

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of Naruto in any way or form.  
  
Kyubi Unleashed  
  
By DigiScanner-Shonen  
  
Chapter 5: Preparations  
  
Tsunade was beginning to pack for the Kage Council, taking place in the Village Hidden in the Sand, remembering those words that Jiraiya had told her.  
  
"A monster..."  
  
It kept echoing in her mind. So this disaster is some kind of monster, she thought. If it was easy for it to defeat Jiraiya that easily, it must be very bad. She hated to think of what would happen if it continued to go unchecked. All those poor people that had to go through what happened...  
  
Tsunade grabbed some socks and stuffed them in her case. What else was there to pack? She had clothes, important documents, some sake... This was going to be her first meeting of the other Kages. She was the first woman to be leader of the Fire Country, so being the only woman Kage in that room would be kind of awkward. She wondered if the other Kages might try to hit on her. If they did, they'd be greeted with a swift smack upside the head.  
  
The meeting would be to discuss current affairs like Orochimaru's attack during the Chuunin Tournament, which was still unfinished. Maybe after the meeting Tsunade could order the Exam to be finished. She had heard that Uzumaki Naruto competed in it and had advanced to the semi-finals. She'd have liked to see how exactly the young Genin fought against his opponents...  
  
She was also going to the meeting to press about the existence of the monster that Jiraiya fought and emerged in the Cloud Country. Maybe the other countries have information on this as well, she thought. If we pool our resources together, we might have a chance to combat this disaster.  
  
There was a knock at the door. Tsunade went to answer. She was greeted with a small army of shinobis, all ready to escort her to the Sand Country.  
  
"Hokage-sama!" they said in unison, "We are ready to serve you!"  
  
"Thank you. Just hold on a moment, I need to pack one more thing," she replied.  
  
"Yes, ma'am!"  
  
Tsunade went back in and double-checked everything she had packed. One thing was missing. She'd need it for luck. She searched her house over and under and found it nowhere. Then, she saw it on her desk, by the counter.  
  
It was a picture of her, Jiraiya, Naruto and Shizune, together in the shade of a large tree, looking happy.  
  
This photo was taken just before Tsunade official became Hokage. She couldn't just leave without it. These were the people who most believed in her, the people who helped her realise her duty to become Hokage. Every time she was down and felt she couldn't go on, she looked at that photo. And every time, she felt her strength renew.  
  
Tsunade folded the picture and put it inside the case. She closed it shut, locked the door to her house and, with her shinobi bodyguards, headed off for the Sand Country.

* * *

Haruno Sakura was sitting down to dinner with her parents. Tonight's meal was spaghetti and meatballs, courtesy of Mrs. Haruno. Since becoming closer to Naruto, Sakura had been happier than she had ever been crushing on Sasuke. But now she felt nervous. Not because the meatballs were uncooked on one side, not because she was supposed to do her long avoided chores tonight, and not because Ino was treating her better now since Sakura had given up Sasuke.  
  
It was because she hadn't told her mother and father about her and Naruto.  
  
Sakura picked at her noodles with a fork. She probably knew how they were going to react. But how to break it to them gently? Mrs. Haruno asked her daughter what was wrong, but Sakura said nothing. Mr. Haruno said she looked a bit pale and to tell them what was wrong. She could tell them anything and they wouldn't be upset. Sakura was really nervous now. Telling her parents about what was going on between her and Naruto?  
  
"Come on, Sakura," Mrs. Haruno said, "Don't hide things from us."  
  
"Again, you can tell us anything and we won't become upset," Mr. Haruno added as he finished his plate.  
  
"Are you sure, Mom, Dad?" Sakura asked.  
  
"Of course, hon. We'll back up your decision no matter what," Mrs. Haruno said.  
  
"So what's wrong?" Mr. Haruno wondered.  
  
Sakura took a deep breath. In and out, she told herself, in and out. Breath of Empowerment, that's what was taught to her at the Ninja Academy. Taking a final breath, Sakura calmed herself and began.  
  
"Well, there's this guy..."  
  
"Still on that boy Sasuke, hmmm?"  
  
"Not really, Mom. Anyway, I used to hate him. He always did something stupid and was kind of clueless about everything. But then he showed me things that I really never knew he could do. He did special jutsus that barely anyone knew. He demonstrated fierce determination in the face of danger. He showed me something I never saw in him before."  
  
"Sounds like a special boy," Mr. Haruno said.  
  
"He is, Daddy. Only recently did he open up about his feelings about me. At first I didn't return them, but then I grew to like him back. He's really special, to me at least."  
  
"A new crush, huh? Finally given up on the unattainable Uchiha Sasuke-kun?"  
  
"Yes, Mom. I gave up on Sasuke-kun because he never returned anything I gave him. He always gave me the cold shoulder and I always felt cold inside, but with this new boy, I feel, well...very warm inside."  
  
"So tell us, who is this new boy that you like?"  
  
"Daddy, do you really want to know? Mom, same with you?"  
  
"Of course," they both replied.  
  
"All right. His name," Sakura began and let it hang for a moment. She wasn't really sure she should tell them, but they had asked for it. She took another Breath of Empowerment and said:  
  
"...is Uzumaki Naruto."  
  
Instantly, her parents' faces turned from curiosity to hatred.  
  
"You stay away from that boy," Mr. Haruno said simply.  
  
"But Daddy, I can't. He's in my team!"  
  
"We'll negotiate something with your sensei."  
  
"Daddy, I can't stay away from Naruto-kun. I'm the only one he truly relates to. I care about him!"  
  
"You can't care about a monster," Mrs. Haruno said.  
  
"Monster? He's not dangerous! Only when he fights against a powerful opponent is he dangerous! He saved me from that strange Sand Ninja Gaara when he and I went after Sasuke-kun during Orochimaru's attack!"  
  
"You went WITH HIM?!" Mr. Haruno burst out, "How long have you been doing this?"  
  
"Only recently by ourselves. We always go with Sasuke-kun and Kakashi- sensei for training and missions."  
  
"I don't want you seeing him again."  
  
"Daddy, he's my friend! Maybe more! I can't stop seeing Naruto-kun!"  
  
"You can and you will!"  
  
"Why do you hate him so much? He hasn't done anything to you!"  
  
"He's done something to everyone in Konoha!"  
  
"What did he do? Tell me!"  
  
"It's his fault that the Forth Hokage is dead!"  
  
"Are you saying Naruto-kun was somehow involved in what happened twelve years ago? He wasn't even born then! How could he be involved with something like that when he didn't exist yet?"  
  
"There is something inside of him that is so dangerous, it has made everyone in town hate him! If it breaks free while you're with him, I hate to think of the consequences of what will happen to the village and you!"  
  
"Sakura, you must understand, we're only trying to protect you," Mrs. Haruno put in.  
  
"Protect me? From what? From Naruto-kun? From the thing inside him? Tell me, what do you hate about him? The boy or the thing inside him?"  
  
Mr. and Mrs. Haruno were at a loss of words. Sakura had a point. They didn't really hate the boy, it was the monster inside of him. Sure Naruto did plenty of wrong things, but it was to get attention.  
  
"Naruto-kun doesn't have anyone! He has no parents, unlike me and the other Genins of Konoha. He told me he only does the things he does to get attention! The only person who ever treated him like a human being was Iruka-sensei! He was as much a father to him as you are to me, Daddy. All he wants is attention and perhaps love! So far, only Iruka-sensei and I have given it to him. We see past the terror that he holds and see Naruto- kun for who he really is! I care about him and he cares about me! If you're going to try and stop me from caring about him, you'll have to kill me!"  
  
Sakura's parents took this all in. They remembered what he held inside him. The demon fox from twelve years ago that ravaged the country. He was sacrificed to bear the fox's presence. Then they thought of the actual boy. How he must have grown up all alone without love, despised because of not who he is, but what he had within. His loneliness must have been extremely overbearing.  
  
Mrs. Haruno looked at her husband. He was one of the survivors who fought the fox from twelve years ago. Of course he would hate the fox for all eternity, but he too must surely be thinking this over.  
  
"Sakura, please excuse your father and I for a moment," Mrs. Haruno said. She took her husband and moved to the kitchen, where Sakura couldn't hear. "Please Yosuke, think about it."  
  
"That boy is dangerous, Miya."  
  
"You heard Sakura talk about him. He keeps the demon fox in check. It hasn't broken out for many years."  
  
"What if it breaks out? What do we do then, hmmm?"  
  
"Yosuke, she loves Naruto. She doesn't even know that he bears Kyubi for all eternity. You heard her speak about him with all her heart."  
  
"I preferred it better when she was infatuated with the Uchiha boy."  
  
"Hon, she gave up on Sasuke-kun because he was always cold to her. You know that he's all that's left of the Uchiha clan and he's obsessed with killing his older brother. The Uchiha's have a dark secret too and with either Naruto-kun or Sasuke-kun we would have to tell our daughter."  
  
"Girls always pick the boy with the deep, dark secret."  
  
"Well, that's why I found you attractive, Yosuke," Mrs. Haruno said, putting her head on Yosuke's shoulder, "We can't deny her her feelings forever."  
  
"Miya, that thing could break out at any time and begin its revenge on us all!"  
  
"Please, Yosuke, just try to get to know the boy. Do what Sakura told us, 'look past what he holds inside of him'. It wouldn't hurt to extend some hospitality and generosity to Naruto-kun. Besides, the fox might be watching from inside of him and maybe getting to know about caring between people has softened it a bit."  
  
Yosuke was silent for a moment, think about it. He still thought extremely low of Kyubi, but Miya and Sakura were right. He did need to look past what Naruto had inside. He took a deep breath and looked down to floor and mumbled something.  
  
"Hmmm? I couldn't hear that, honey," Miya said.  
  
"I said I'll try to make the boy feel welcome. Ask Sakura to invite him to dinner tomorrow."  
  
"She'll be so pleased. Thank you," Mrs. Haruno gave her husband a kiss on the cheek and went to tell her daughter the good news.  
  
Haruno Yosuke could hear Sakura's voice screaming in glee and saw her rush in and hug him. Yosuke smiled a bit, thinking of just how happy Sakura must be.  
  
He just prayed he could overlook his bitterness towards Naruto and share the same kind of joy.

* * *

Uchiha Sasuke had done everything the scroll told him. He cleared his mind. He made sure that nothing could distract him. He had put his home under lock and key and was about to read the first part of the scroll.  
  
As he went over last minute checks, Sasuke couldn't help but feel a bit excited. If he was right, the scroll would tell him how to unlock his true power and he'd be able to beat both Naruto and his brother Itachi.  
  
Sasuke started out as an elite shinobi and wanted to stay that way. But to have his power threatened by a dense, ramen-scarfing blonde ninja was unacceptable. Sasuke usually thought less of Naruto since becoming team- mates with him and Sakura, but recently he had shown some real power. Naruto was able to take on Haku back in the Wave Country. He had defeated Gaara of the Desert during Orochimaru's attack. He trained with Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Ninjas of the Leaf. Gradually, Sasuke had begun to respect Naruto not only as a ninja, but as a rival as well.  
  
Still, he hated Naruto. His brother, Itachi, had passed over Sasuke, looking for Naruto and the power inside him. Sasuke had fought Itachi, but it still wasn't enough. Sasuke was still defeated. Naruto may have fared worse than him, but he may have fared better still. And it was because of something inside him. Something that had driven him to do all these things. Sasuke wanted to know exactly what that power was.  
  
And if he could, claim it for himself.  
  
Sasuke entered his room and reached for the scroll hidden under his pillow. With the Sharingan, Sasuke was a formidable opponent. With Orochimaru's Curse Seal, Sasuke was dangerous. With the techniques that Kakashi-sensei taught him, Sasuke could be named the best Genin of the Rookie Nine of Ninja Academy. Now combined with this scroll which could unleash all his power, he would be one of the most powerful ninjas in Konohagakure, if not the most powerful.  
  
Sasuke again cleared his mind and opened the scroll to read what it contained.  
  
It was time to unleash his true power.

* * *

Uzumaki Naruto was training on the outskirts of town. He was working on tree climbing again, to focus his chakra. It was still one of his weakest points as a shinobi. He had picked an extremely tall tree to climb and wanted to reach the top with no problem. So far, he had only made it halfway, but the blonde ninja wasn't one to give up so easily. Again thinking of his Sakura-chan cheering him on and beating that baka Sasuke was enough to keep him going.  
  
Focusing the all the chakra he would need to get to the top, Naruto could feel the energy flowing to his feet.  
  
Ready, steady, GO!!  
  
Naruto was off like a light. He dashed towards the tree and made a jump onto the tree. He wasted no time in running upwards to the top. Everything was rushing past him. He went farther and farther up. He was almost past the halfway point when he felt something stir within him again. It was Kyubi again, still uneasy about what was coming.  
  
Naruto tried to make Kyubi ignore it, but doing that meant concentration, but he also needed to concentrate on what he was doing or he would fall down again. The stirrings in him were so strong that it was making Naruto slip. He reluctantly pulled back from the tree and headed for the ground to talk to Kyubi.  
  
"Kyubi, what's wrong with you? You've been like this for days," he silently muttered, sure Kyubi could hear him. Before he could ask further on what was wrong, he heard Sakura's voice.  
  
"Hey Naruto-kun!"  
  
"Sakura-chan! Hey!" Naruto waved as he saw her rushing to him and he went to greet her, "What's up?"  
  
"Hold on a second," Sakura panted as she caught her breath, "Why don't you ever train IN the village?"  
  
"I just don't like to."  
  
"Sounds reasonable. Anyway, my parents want to invite you over to dinner tomorrow night."  
  
"Really? They want ME there?" Naruto was in shock. Eating with Sakura- chan's parents was something he never thought possible.  
  
"Of course. They'd love to have you. I hope you bring your huge appetite tomorrow because Daddy's going to cook up a feast for us."  
  
"I wouldn't miss it for the world, Sakura-chan! What time should I be there?"  
  
"I'd say around six o'clock would be good."  
  
"Great! I'll be there at five! I wonder what the course will be..."  
  
"I don't know, but Mom says it'll be delicious. I got to go. I'll see you tomorrow, then, Naruto-kun! Ja mata ne!" Sakura said as she headed off for home.  
  
"Ja ne, Sakura-chan!" Naruto said. Oh man, eating at her place would be great, he thought. What with the food and the occasion just for him and the parents...  
  
Just then Naruto thought of something. Sakura-chan's parents. He had never thought of talking to them. He'd just be intimidated by them. He knew how everyone felt about him, so Sakura-chan's parents would be the same. Even just sitting in the same room with him made anybody uncomfertable. Naruto started wondering what exactly was in their minds, asking him to dine with them. Were they going to kill him?  
  
Naruto began to wonder why he ever said yes in the first place.  
  
TO BE CONTINUED!  
  
Well, do you like this part or not? Let me know by reviewing! And keep a lookout for the next chapter coming soon. 


	6. Unexpected Situations

Disclaimer: Again, I do not own the characters of Naruto in any way. That's enough of that. On with the story!  
  
Kyubi Unleashed  
  
By DigiScanner-Shonen  
  
Chapter 6: Unexpected Situations  
  
Uzumaki Naruto was nervously walking back and forth outside his home, all the while debating on what to do. Should I go to her place for dinner, or just decline? He had asked himself this. He had knots in his stomach and was working up a sweat. It wasn't because he didn't WANT to go eat with his Sakura-chan, no. And it wasn't because he had done some difficult training earlier that morning with Jiraiya, his new mentor whom he usually called 'Pervert-Sennin'.  
  
It was because of Sakura-chan's parents.  
  
While anyone could get nervous going to their girlfriend's house to meet her parents, it was very much different for Naruto. Practically everyone in town knew about the nine-tailed fox monster inside him and because of that, everyone treated him coldly. Sakura-chan's parents would be just the same.  
  
I could tell her I became sick. Yeah! I could do that, Naruto thought to himself as he continued to walk, but I already agreed to go. And Sakura- chan might think I don't want to meet her folks. I don't! No, wait, I do! I mean I don't! Oh, I don't know what I mean!  
  
Naruto needed help. He needed someone other than himself there with him to take some of the edge off meeting his Sakura-chan's parents. A friend he trusted and knew could vouch for Naruto.  
  
Nara Shikamaru? No, he doesn't like girls.  
  
Hyuga Hinata? Nah, she'd get shy in front of anybody.  
  
Rock Lee? No way, he'd get all hearty about eating with Sakura-chan.  
  
Who else was there that he could trust and could vouch for him? Then, he thought of it. The one other person whom he trusted and could vouch for him.  
  
With his mind made up, Naruto ran off to find the person he needed.

* * *

He did not know why he had come back here. No, he did. He wanted to find him. The one person who had shown him a better way. He had brought his companions with him, the only real family he had. Why he did, he'd never really understand.  
  
They stood on a tree in the forest surrounding a very large village. Just a few feet in front of them was the gate to the village. So far, no one had seen them coming. They were able to avoid detection favourably.  
  
They were breaking rules, coming back here. If someone from the village spotted them and knew them, they'd be in big trouble. They'd fight him off. No, he told himself, that's not the way. They weren't invaders, they were friends. He wouldn't blame them for trying to attack him and his companions. After what they did months ago and if it was his own village, he'd probably do the same thing.  
  
"Hey, are you sure about this?" a voice asked.  
  
"Yes," he replied.  
  
"We can still turn back," a second voice added to the first one.  
  
"You can go back if you want. I want to see him. I need to..."  
  
"We know. We'll keep going with you," the first voice said.  
  
"Fine," the owner of the person who was searching for someone said. With that, they leapt off the tree and headed for the gate. He'd find the person, he was sure of it. He'd done research on the person and knew he was here.  
  
He was somewhere in Konohagakure.

* * *

Tsunade sat down at the round table in a very large, curved room. In it were different banners with different colours and symbols, each representing the different Shinobi Villages. There were windows to the side, with drapes pulled so no one could see what was going on inside. This was her first time being in a meeting with many important people.  
  
But then again, she was one of them.  
  
The female Hokage took out from her clothing the picture of her, Jiraiya, Naruto and Shizune. She gazed at it. These people were the reason she was here now at the Kage Council. She looked at it and took in a deep breath. She hoped she could draw strength from them. Taking a last look at it, she put it back and faced the other council members.  
  
The other Kages, Raikage, Mizukage and Tsuchikage, all looked at her.  
  
"Are you ready, Hokage-dono?" Mizukage asked.  
  
"Yes, I'm ready," Tsunade answered.  
  
"Then let us begin this meeting of the Kage Council. We are all here to talk about the recent...events that have happened throughout the Shinobi world. We shall begin with Hokage-dono."  
  
"Ah! All right," Tsunade began, "Many things have happened recently to the Leaf Country. As you may recall, we had the Chuunin Exam a few months ago. During the final exam, in the Uchiha Vs. Gaara match..."  
  
"Fine match, that looked to be. Too bad I couldn't be there. I had things to do that day," Tsuchikage commented.  
  
"...Orochimaru, one of the Three Legendary Leaf Ninjas, like myself, attacked Konohagakure with Sand and Sound ninjas after murdering the Kazekage and retaining his disguise. Many talented shinobi died in the attack, including my predecessor, Sarutobi-sama."  
  
"Yes, poor Sarutobi-sama," Raikage added.  
  
"After his funeral, I was sought out to become his replacement since I am one of the Three Legendary Leaf Ninjas, as well as the granddaughter of the First Hokage. Actually, one of the reasons I actually accepted was because of a boy. A mere child you may think, but he is more than he appears."  
  
"Who was the child?" Mizukage asked.  
  
"Uzumaki Naruto."  
  
"The boy with Kyubi?" Tsuchikage looked shocked, "That...that...THING was the reason you took up your grandfather's position?"  
  
"He is not a thing. He is a talented ninja, like any of us. His mentor is Jiraiya, the other Legendary Leaf Ninja. Naruto's previous mentor was Hatake Kakashi. Both Kakashi-kun and Jiraiya have taught him many things. Jiraiya even taught Naruto his own Rasengan, which Naruto mastered in just a week!"  
  
"A week?! No one could master that move in a week!" Mizukage protested.  
  
"He did."  
  
"His former mentor was the infamous copy ninja Hatake Kakashi? Impressive..." Raikage added.  
  
"Yes, it is."  
  
"What other claims does this boy have?" Tsuchikage asked.  
  
"He says that he will become the next Hokage after I pass on. And after seeing him in battle, I can comfortably say that I believe he will succeed."  
  
All the Kages remained silent as they thought of the boy who was the living vessel of Kyubi becoming the next Hokage. It lasted for a moment, then Tsunade continued.  
  
"But that is not the reason I come before you now. My sources tell me that from the Cloud Country, a terrible tragedy is befalling all who cross its path."  
  
"And what are your sources?" Raikage wondered.  
  
"I sent several shinobi, including Jiraiya, into the Cloud Country a few days ago to investigate."  
  
"I still don't like the idea of Leaf ninjas snooping about in my country..."  
  
"All but Jiraiya were killed brutally upon contact with this thing. I only retained one thing from Jiraiya himself. He said...it was a monster."  
  
"Yes, but we are dealing with it quite well, thank you, Hokage-dono," Raikage said indignantly.  
  
"It's roaming the Cloud Country freely, creating destruction wherever it goes. You call that dealing with it?" Tsunade stood up angrily.  
  
"Who are you to go meddling in countries other than your own's business? We need no assistance from Leaf Country, or any country for that matter. We are fine."  
  
"If that thing continues to go unchecked, the whole Shinobi world could be in ruin before the end of the year!"  
  
"Then what do you suggest we do, Tsunade?!"  
  
Tsunade was at a loss. She hadn't thought of that before. What could they do to stop it? She asked herself as she sat back down.  
  
"Well, what do we know about it? What is it?"  
  
"It's too powerful to contain within a body. It's ferocious and will stop at nothing to get what it wants," Raikage told her.  
  
"But what is it?" the Hokage repeated.  
  
"I sent some of my own men recently to answer that question. It appears to be some sort of animal, but that's all we know."  
  
"What does it want, then?" Mizukage asked.  
  
"Destruction. What else do you think monsters like it want?"  
  
"..."  
  
"We need a solution to stop this creature before it can wreak more havoc on our world," Tsuchikage said.  
  
"Obviously," the Raikage said sarcastically.  
  
"How can we stop a monster we barely know about? Any more details on what it is, Raikage-dono?"  
  
"It's got teeth, claws and fur, like practically all animals do."  
  
"Hmmmm..." the Tsuchikage looked down and scratched his chin, thinking of a plan. The other Kages did the same. How could they stop it?  
  
Suddenly, an idea came to Tsunade. It was pretty thin, though. "Kage- donos?"  
  
"Yes?" they all replied.  
  
"I believe I may have a solution. Bare in mind, this is very thin and may not work. It could backfire and doom us even faster if it does."  
  
"What's your great idea, Hokage-dono?" Raikage asked.  
  
"How do you stop a thief?"  
  
"Police," Tsuchikage answered automatically.  
  
"No, put him up against another thief. In this case, if you want to stop a disaster, send another one."  
  
"What are you getting at?" Mizukage asked.  
  
"We want to stop this monster, we send one in to fight for us."  
  
"Pardon my rudeness, but if you haven't noticed...we don't have any monsters!!" Raikage exclaimed.  
  
"But we do."  
  
"Which one?" Tsuchikage wondered.  
  
Tsunade pulled out her picture of those who were important to her. She handed it around and all the Kages looked at it. They all began to catch onto her idea.  
  
And they didn't like it at all.

* * *

"I still can't believe Iruka-sensei wasn't home! Damn!" Naruto pouted as he stuck his hands in his pockets after ringing the doorbell. But then again, he did have to complete assignments as well. The only other person he knew he could count on was, "And I still can't believe I'm bringing you here!"  
  
"No one else was available, and you must treat your sensei well or else he won't show you new techniques," Jiraiya said smugly.  
  
"Shut up, Pervert-Sennin!" Naruto growled.  
  
The door opened and standing there was Haruno Sakura, in her usual attire. "Ah! Naruto-kun, you made it! I was beginning to think you weren't coming!"  
  
"I do not back down from any challenges. That is my ninja way, Sakura- chan."  
  
"As you repeatedly say," Sakura said sarcastically as she opened the door wider so Naruto could come in. She then noticed the other visitor. "Naruto- kun? Who's this?"  
  
"Oh, him? That's the Pervert-Sennin, my new sensei," Naruto said indifferently as he took of his sandals.  
  
"I'm not just a Pervert-Sennin! I am Jiraiya, greatest of the Three Legendary Leaf Ninjas, the amazing Toad Summoner, author of the Come-Come Paradise novels, Super Pervert-Sennin!!" Jiraiya boasted, puffing out his chest and striking a heroic pose.  
  
"Ah...yeah..." Sakura said, "Anyway, come in, food's almost ready."  
  
"Great, Sakura-chan! I'm starved!" Naruto cheered, "Are we having ramen?"  
  
"Um, no. Sorry," Sakura apologised.  
  
"No problem. As long as I'm here with you, Sakura-chan, I feel as if I need nothing else other than to be with you."  
  
At this, Sakura blushed. "Thanks, Naruto-kun. Why don't we talk in the living room?"  
  
As Sakura motioned them to the living room, Jiraiya leaned down to his pupil, "She's a cutie, ain't she?"  
  
"Shut UP, Pervert-Sennin!!" Naruto shouted at his mentor as he walked into the living room. As soon as he was fully in, he and Jiraiya first looked upon Sakura's parents. Just one look and Naruto was staring at the floor, his insides feeling all mixed up.  
  
Sakura's father, Haruno Yosuke, looked tall and proud. His short and somewhat curly brown hair was starting to recede, his green eyes looked a little cold looking at Naruto, his thin lips looked like they were trying to bring themselves up into a smile, but were failing. He wore a dark coloured, one-piece suit which most Chuunin or Jounin wore.  
  
Sakura's mother, however, was a different story. She was a little shorter than her husband. Her long pink hair was tied into a ponytail, her brown eyes looked full of warmth and kindness, and her mouth was drawn into a smile. She was wearing a green apron, a purple shirt and a blue skirt.  
  
Jiraiya immediately rushed over to Mrs. Haruno, grabbing her hands. "Wow!! Forget the daughter, the mother's a hottie!"  
  
"I'd advise you to draw away from my wife, sir," Yosuke slapped Jiraiya's cheek and he looked ready to pounce on the Sennin, "Who are you anyway?"  
  
"Who am I? I am Jiraiya, greatest of the..." Jiraiya began.  
  
"He's my sensei right now. Oh, and he's apparently one of three Ninjas of the Leaf who are great or something like that..." Naruto mumbled as he stared to the floor.  
  
"Oh! So then, you are Jiraiya-sama?" Mrs. Haruno asked.  
  
"You would be correct, ma'am. I am not only Jiraiya of the Three Legendary Leaf Ninjas, but I am also the greatest of them!"  
  
"So how come we had to put old hag Tsunade of you three into the Hokage chair?" Naruto asked.  
  
"I don't want to attend boring meetings and looking for the well being of the country and the very ninja world! I want to be free like the bird, to roam free and continue my Come-Come Paradise books!"  
  
"I still think those are nasty..."  
  
"You don't grasp the brilliance that..."  
  
"We didn't expect another person to come with us to eat, but I am sure that we can squeeze some food in for Jiraiya-sama," Mrs. Haruno said, "I'll go get everything ready. Sakura? Could you help me?"  
  
"Sure mom," Sakura said, "I'll be right back, Naruto-kun."  
  
"I'll go and help her too," Jiraiya added as he winked at Naruto and gave him the nudge-nudge. With Mrs. Haruno, Sakura and Jiraiya gone, that left Mr. Haruno and Naruto alone. Naruto sat down on a couch on one side of the room while Mr. Haruno sat on another on the other side.  
  
Both were silent for a couple minutes, not knowing quite what to say to the other. Naruto wasn't sure he could talk to the father; likewise, Mr. Haruno was the same to Naruto. At last, Mr. Haruno spoke.  
  
"So..." he began, "You like my...daughter..."  
  
"Yes. She is...very special in my eyes. I crushed on her since the Academy and when we became...teammates," Naruto tried to look at Sakura's father, but quickly looked at something else, "I thought I could prove myself...good enough to be her...uh..."  
  
"Boyfriend?"  
  
"Yes...that's it. It was only recently I told her that I...that I...like her as more than a friend."  
  
"I see," Mr. Haruno said as he tried to focus on the boy and not the beast, "She has been talking about you ever since you and her came forward about your...um, feelings. I just want to make sure your intentions are...honourable."  
  
"Like how?"  
  
"Like you won't take advantage of her or...discourage her on what she wants to do or...hurt her."  
  
"I swear on my word as a ninja that I could never harm Sakura-chan! She means more to me than becoming Hokage!" Naruto insisted.  
  
"Good, good..." Yosuke said and they were silent again. Yosuke was about to say something else when Mrs. Haruno's voice came and said that dinner was ready.

* * *

Uchiha Sasuke was breathing hard as lay on his back on the ground in his room. Everything around him was broken or torn. He had made a hole in one of the walls and it didn't stop there. It also went through the walls of the other rooms.  
  
He looked down at his hand. It still had some chakra left over from the Chidori he had just pulled. And was it large. It was probably the biggest move and the most chakra he had ever pulled out. He looked up at the ceiling, almost in disbelief of what he had just did. It must be some kind of dream, he thought, for me to have this much power. His head turned to the large scroll he had read only a day ago, lying only a few feet away from him by his overturned bed. Whatever force had made him to find it, he thanked it severely.  
  
Sasuke pulled himself of the ground and walked to the bathroom. As he looked in the mirror, he saw that his clothes were torn, his face was dirty from the debris and that his hair seemed longer than before, possibly a sign that he had grown much in his training. But that didn't matter, he had power now. And that was all that mattered to him.  
  
He still wanted to look a little presentable, so he washed his face of the filth, changed his normal clothes to the bodysuit he wore during the Chuunin Tournament and took one last look at himself. He looked stronger. Smarter. More powerful.  
  
He dashed out of the bathroom and out the door. He felt his awakened power flow through him like a life stream. He could take Itachi now, with all this power. But first he had to take one final test. He had to use his power to defeat the one person that Itachi had his sights set on. If Sasuke did that, Itachi would no longer target the person, but instead target Sasuke. Then Sasuke would finally defeat his brother, fulfilling his life's purpose as the avenger of the Uchiha clan.  
  
Oh yes. He's doomed, Sasuke thought as he dashed from his home going into Konoha, Let's see how long he can stand up to my new power. We end this today. We shall finally see who is the more powerful of the two of us, blonde boy.  
  
Uchiha Sasuke kept repeating this through his mind as he began his search for the Genin known throughout the Village as Uzumaki Naruto.

* * *

Dinner is actually going smoothly, thought Haruno Sakura as she took another bite of her roast beef, Daddy hasn't throttled Naruto-kun yet and Naruto-kun doesn't looked stressed out from eating at the same table as Daddy.  
  
Sakura took another glance at Naruto, who was sweating profusely and shook nervously as he ate and looked at Sakura's father. Mr. Haruno managed to put on a good charade in front of his family and didn't look like he'd leap on Naruto and kill him. Yet.  
  
Now if only Jiraiya-sama would stop making advances on Mom, Sakura thought hesitantly as she looked at Jiraiya trying to impress Mrs. Haruno, Oh well. You can't have everything.  
  
"Thank you for the food, Mom. It was delicious," Sakura said to her mother.  
  
"Thank you, honey. Does anyone else like the food?"  
  
"I do! It's the most spectacular roast beef I've ever eaten! You cook the best things, Haruno-san," Jiraiya burst out as he winked vigorously at Mrs. Haruno.  
  
"Yes, erm...thank you, Jiraiya-sama. Yosuke, Naruto? Do you like the food?" Sakura's mother asked her husband and Naruto.  
  
"It's...ah...good...Mrs. Haruno...thank you...very much..." Naruto choked out as he tried not to look Mr. Haruno in the eye.  
  
"It's delicious, hon. Thank you very much," Mr. Haruno thanked his wife.  
  
"Oh, thank you. I hope you saved some room after you ate because I made dessert!" Mrs. Haruno said as she moved to the kitchen.  
  
"What did you make, Mom?" Sakura asked.  
  
"My famous apple cobbler ice cream sundae with pudding!" she replied as she moved to get the dessert!"  
  
"Ooh! Mom, you're the greatest!" Sakura almost squealed, "Wait 'til you try it, Naruto-kun. Mom makes the best desserts in Konohagakure!"  
  
"Y-yeah...I'll bet..." Naruto said as he tried his best to stay calm in front of Sakura's father.  
  
"So...Naruto...I hear you..." Mr. Haruno began as he looked at the boy his daughter had feelings for, "mastered a special move...within a week?"  
  
"Hmm? Oh, that! Yeah, I did!" Naruto all of a sudden became excited after Mr. Haruno asked about it, "It's called the Rasengan and it's my best move so far. I got taught it by the Pervert-Sennin over there..."  
  
"That's the great Jiraiya-sama to you," Jiraiya huffed.  
  
"Whatever. Anyway, I focus on swirling a lot of chakra and focusing it into a ball shape..."  
  
Sakura's father looked interested in Naruto now. Sakura couldn't be happier. At that moment, the doorbell rang.  
  
"Sakura, honey, can you get that while I put out dessert?" Mrs. Haruno asked.  
  
"Sure, Mom. I'll be right back, Daddy, Naruto-kun," Sakura said as she got up from the table and went to answer the door. As she opened it, she said "Hello?" in her usual manner.  
  
What she didn't expect was whom she saw there.  
  
"KYYAAAAAHHH!!" Sakura screamed as she fell backwards onto her bottom, looking up in shock and horror.  
  
"Sakura-chan! What happened?" Naruto asked as he ran to her to help her up with Jiraiya, Mr. and Mrs. Haruno right behind him. Naruto looked up to the doorway and saw three figures. One was a boy with war paint on his face, all dressed in a black cloak. He had what looked like a giant thing wrapped in bandages. Another was a girl with blonde hair pulled into several pigtails in the front and back. She wore purple clothing and had some see- through ninja garments on her legs. She also had a gigantic fan behind her back.  
  
But the one who caught Naruto's attention the most was the final one. He was a boy with red hair, black skin surrounding his eyes, and a kanji tattoo on the left part of his forehead. He wore long red clothing with the same see-through ninja garments at the bottom of his legs and on his arms toward his wrists and a white cloth wrapped around his shoulders. Wrapped around his person was a leather strap, holding a giant stamped vase with a cork at the top.  
  
All three of them had forehead protectors somewhere on their person, indicating the village where they originated from. It looked like an hourglass upon the steel of the protector. There was no doubt about it, they were from the Hidden Sand Village who attacked them several months ago. But neither Naruto nor Sakura expected to see them again. At first the adults looked a little clueless on who the three were, but were shocked nonetheless.  
  
"Sakura, who are these people?" Mr. Haruno asked.  
  
"Allow us to introduce ourselves," the boy in black said, "We are from the Sand Village and were involved in the attack on Konoha a few months ago."  
  
"But that is not why we are here," the girl added, "We are here on account on a goal of peace. Not for our country, but for ourselves."  
  
"We are the ninjas of Hidden Sand. Allies of Konohagakure. The Sand Ninjas," the last boy said as he looked upon Naruto. There was certainly no doubt in Naruto's mind now on who they were.  
  
It was the Sand Siblings from the Chuunin Exam. Kankuro, Temari and...  
  
Gaara.  
  
TO BE CONTINUED!  
  
Things are getting tense! Gaara, Temari and Kankuro in Konoha for what reason? How powerful is Sasuke now? And what will the Kage Council's decision be? You can find out by sending me reviews! 


	7. Sasuke's Test

Disclaimer: I again do not own the characters of Naruto, much as I would like to. Anyway, back to the story where things are really starting to get tense...  
  
Kyubi Unleashed  
  
By DigiScanner-Shonen  
  
Chapter 7: Sasuke's Test  
  
Haruno Sakura couldn't believe what she saw right in front of her eyes. And she could bet neither could Naruto, her parents or the so-called Legendary Ninja that taught Naruto. Here in front of her were the Sand Siblings who had entered the Chuunin Exam and caused so much pain to many other shinobi. Kankuro, who had threatened to kill Konohamaru, Naruto's friend and the grandson of the previous Hokage, and poisoned Aburame Shino when he and Uchiha Sasuke went after the trio when the attack on Konohagakure began and they fled. Temari, who had mercilessly thrashed Tenten during the Chuunin Preliminaries.  
  
But the worst was Gaara, the apparent leader. He didn't hesitate to kill, in fact, it seemed he enjoyed it. He had killed a team in the second test of the Chuunin Exam without a second thought. But what really upset Sakura about the boy was that he caused so much pain to those she cared about.  
  
First was Rock Lee, a taijutsu specialist ninja with a crush on her and was Gaara's first opponent in the exam. Gaara and Lee battled fiercely, and when it looked like Gaara had the upper hand, Lee opened five Chakra Gates and executed the Extreme Lotus. But it was not without its punishments. Lee had wrecked his body and the referee was about to call the match, but Lee got up and, with his bruised, bloody, torn body, signalled that he wasn't ready to quit yet! The referee still called the match and Lee was out of the Chuunin Exam. Lee's suffering went on because he still trained with his bad body, and recently, the new Hokage looked at Lee and said he could no longer be a ninja unless he took a very risky surgery that was at best a fifty percent survival rate. Luckily, Lee had got out fine and was ready to train again, but his fight with Gaara still remained in Sakura's mind.  
  
Then there was Uchiha Sasuke, her first crush of years. Right when they first met, Sasuke and Gaara seemed to hate each other and wanted to fight right away, but they didn't get a chance until the Chuunin Tournament. The fight was tense and before it could be finished, the attack on Konohagakure had started. Gaara had fled with Temari and Kankuro, but Sasuke and Shino had pursued them, Sasuke was eager to finish his fight with Gaara and Shino was backup to take on Kankuro and Temari. When Sakura and Naruto arrived to where they were, Sasuke had released his Curse Seal and had used up a lot of his energy. He was badly hurt and Sakura had to stay and protect him from Gaara. However, Sakura was pinned to a tree with some of his sand and it was slowly killing her at the time.  
  
Finally, there was Naruto, her new boyfriend. The fight between Naruto and Gaara seemed to go much deeper than merely defending her and Sasuke. It was like they both had a reason to exist and were testing it against each other. Sakura had heard about the fight from Sasuke and she told him that Naruto had done things that they never thought he could do. He had summoned frogs, pulled several tough jutsus off, and even transformed one thing into another. And still, the fight wasn't finished. Sasuke had gone to check on Naruto and saw that both he and Gaara were exhausted and beaten. Naruto seemed to change a little after the fight, but he still stayed the same.  
  
That's why she couldn't believe that they were right in front of her, at her doorstep, after all the pain they had caused to the others.  
  
"What do you want?!" Sakura screamed at them, "Why are you here, after what happened those months ago?"  
  
"You're from Hidden Sand, who were involved in the attack?" Sakura's father asked of the ninjas, "We aren't allowed to have you in the village after what happened."  
  
"We know," Temari said, "But we aren't here to start a war or anything. We just came because he did."  
  
She pointed at Gaara as she said this. "He just came here for one reason, we're just along for the ride."  
  
"And what would this reason be?" Mr. Haruno asked.  
  
"Him," Gaara said as he pointed at Naruto, who was now holding Sakura up, "I came for him."  
  
"Well, here I am," Naruto said, "Now what do you want with me? I'll co- operate just so long as you leave Sakura-chan and the village alone."  
  
Gaara walked into the house and crouched down until he was eye level with Naruto. They both looked at each other fiercely, with what Sakura made out as, a bit of hostility, hatred, and determination to get what they wanted. But there also seemed to be a glimmer of something between them. It looked to be respect, empathy, understanding and a kind of admiration.  
  
"I just wanted to say one thing..." Gaara began.  
  
There seemed to be a tenseness in the air as the two looked at each other, no one seemed to breathe and time stood still as they waited for what the red-haired Sand shinobi had to say. For a moment, Sakura saw something within Gaara. It looked like he was struggling to get something out, admitting something he was embarrassed to. She couldn't describe it, but it looked as if he had softened since the exam.  
  
"Thank you, Naruto."  
  
Everyone seemed to be in shock at what he had just said. Sakura was sure she had imagined what just happened, but here it was. Gaara, the hardened killer, saying thanks to Naruto? It was just something too weird to hear or even witness.  
  
Sakura looked up at Naruto, seeing if he could understand what Gaara just said. He kept his fierce face on. She looked back and forth between the two ninjas, trying to figure out what the meaning of all this was. When she got back to Naruto, his face no longer looked fierce or hostile, but friendly and happy.  
  
"You're welcome," Naruto said as he grinned widely at Gaara.  
  
Gaara nodded at Naruto and Sakura saw something she never thought she'd see: Gaara smiling. She looked back at her parents and Jiraiya and they all seemed to be as confused as her.  
  
"That was it?" Kankuro asked in disbelief, "That's what we came all this way for?"  
  
"You have a problem?" Gaara asked as he turned to Kankuro with eyes that made him look like his old self.  
  
"N-no! Of course not! It's good that we came all this way!"  
  
"That's what I hoped to hear," Gaara said as he got up, "I guess we'd better be going."  
  
As they turned to leave, Naruto stood up. "Wait! Don't go yet!"  
  
"Why not? Don't you know what they'll do if they catch us?" Temari asked, "Your village has become a bit paranoid since the attack, so we better go before we cause an incident."  
  
"Last thing we want is another war between the Sand and Leaf Countries," Gaara said, "Besides, why would you want us to stay?"  
  
"You said it yourself, you don't want to have another war between the countries, which means you don't want any more killing. Plus, Gaara..." Naruto said, "You're the only one who can understand where I'm coming from, other than Sakura-chan, Pervert-Sennin and Iruka-sensei."  
  
"We don't have a place to stay," Kankuro told them.  
  
"You can stay with me! It gets pretty boring living by yourself," Naruto said, "And I can cover for you if anyone asks what you're doing in the village!"  
  
The three Sand Ninjas thought the offer over. It did sound kind of tempting to them.  
  
"Someone is bound to notice we're gone," Temari said.  
  
"I'll take care of it," Kankuro told his "sister", "Besides, a lot of people hate us back home anyway."  
  
"So you'll stay?" Naruto asked hopefully.  
  
"We accept, Uzumaki Naruto," Gaara replied.  
  
"Great!" Naruto cheered, "You guys won't regret it, I promise!"  
  
"That'll remain to be seen..." Kankuro said, "Anyway, I'll head back to Hidden Sand to report our 'departure' from the village."  
  
"Be safe, Kankuro," Temari told her friend.  
  
"Good luck, Kankuro," Gaara said, "We'll be waiting for you."  
  
"Wait! The least we can do is give you some food," Sakura said as she moved towards the kitchen, "We've got some roast beef leftover that you can take with you. I'll get it, hold on a second..."  
  
"Roast beef?" Kankuro asked.  
  
"Yeah, my mom makes it really good," Sakura said as she handed Kankuro a rolled up cloth with the food inside, "I hope you'll like it."  
  
"I'm sure I will. Now, I must be going. Thank you for the food, Sakura, Mrs. Haruno. Naruto, Gaara, Temari, I'll see you soon," Kankuro said. And with that, he bounded off into the night beginning the journey back home.  
  
"Well, that was...interesting," Mrs. Haruno said, "I guess since the two of you will be staying with Naruto, you'll want some food as well."  
  
"That would be great," Temari said.  
  
"We were just about to have dessert. I guess I can make you some, too."  
  
"You're too kind," Gaara said as he bowed to Mrs. Haruno in thankfulness.  
  
"We appreciate this greatly, ma'am," Temari said as she also bowed to Mrs. Haruno.  
  
"Well, don't just stand there, guys! Take off your shoes! Come in, come in!" Naruto insisted.  
  
"Naruto..." Sakura said as she pulled her friend to the side as Gaara and Temari took off their shoes, "Are you sure you should do that? Letting them stay with you? They could kill you at any time! They could wreck the village!"  
  
"Sakura-chan, if you saw what I saw in Gaara's eyes, you'd know he's changed," Naruto said, "Besides, he said that I'm as strong as him, possibly stronger!"  
  
"Why do you want them to stay with you?"  
  
"Because, Gaara and I..." Naruto paused.  
  
"You and Gaara what?"  
  
"We both have...a...mutual respect for each other. Trust me, Sakura-chan. I know what I'm doing."  
  
I hope so Naruto, Sakura said as Naruto went to welcome Gaara and Temari into the house, I hope so.

* * *

Uchiha Sasuke ran through Konohagakure, desperately searching for Uzumaki Naruto. He had already asked Yamanaka Ino's group where Naruto was, and they had said they didn't know. After managing to escape from Ino's attempt to get him to stay with her, Sasuke had resumed his search. As far as Sasuke knew, he was probably running in circles.  
  
_Wait a minute_, Sasuke stopped and thought for a moment, _I shouldn't be thinking like myself to find him. I should think like him to find him!  
_  
Sasuke now had a solution on what to do. _If I was the dunce, where would I be at this time?_ Sasuke thought hard. This wasn't a genius he was dealing with, it was Naruto. All he had to do was find out what he would do at this time of night.  
  
It's night and around this time, everyone would be eating. Naruto usually likes to eat, so...  
  
Then it struck Sasuke. _The Ichiraku Ramen Bar! The dunce's favourite place!_ He dashed towards the noodle joint, hoping that Naruto would be there. Running past the different people in the streets trying to get home, past houses and buildings, Sasuke didn't stop for anything. As soon as he saw the awning of the bar, he dashed inwards calling out, "Naruto!!"  
  
What he saw wasn't Naruto. Instead, what he saw when they all turned around was a boy in a long-collared coat with sunglasses, a brunette girl with white eyes in a jacket, a boy with fierce eyes in a furry hooded sweatshirt with a small dog beside his stool and a long, dark haired woman wrapped in a cloth of sorts. Aburame Shino, Hyuga Hinata, Inuzuka Kiba and Akamaru, and their sensei, Yuuhi Kurenai.  
  
"Sa-Sasuke-kun!" Hinata said, as she looked surprised at the sudden arrival of Sasuke.  
  
"Uchiha," Shino said coolly, "What are you doing here?"  
  
"I was about to ask you the same thing, Aburame," Sasuke said as he wiped off some sweat from running all the way to the bar.  
  
"We were just eating dinner," Kiba told him, "Kurenai-sensei said she'd treat us to some ramen after training. What do you want? I was just about to give Akamaru some ramen."  
  
"I was looking for Naruto. I thought he'd be here for some ramen. Have you seen Naruto?"  
  
"Why do you want Naruto?" Kurenai asked.  
  
"To test something against him."  
  
"Wh-what do you want to t-test against Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked.  
  
"Did you find a new strategy to beat him?" Kiba asked eagerly.  
  
Sasuke simply smirked at Kiba's question. "You could say that..."  
  
Akamaru seemed to shiver and whimper next to Kiba, but no one but Kiba noticed at the time.  
  
"Relax, Akamaru. You'll get some ramen in a second," Kiba said to his partner. But then he noticed Akamaru not whimpering, but shivering, "Hey, Akamaru, chill. It's just Sasuke."  
  
But Akamaru continued to shiver and whimper.  
  
"Can you keep that thing quiet for a second?" Shino asked Kiba.  
  
"He's not a thing! He's my friend, Akamaru! You don't like it, Shino? Then take a hike!" Kiba told his teammate.  
  
"It's still annoying."  
  
"Don't worry, Shino. I'll keep him quiet for you if you want. Plus I want to test something..." Sasuke said as he kneeled down to Akamaru. He reached his hand out and Akamaru seemed to move backwards, like it was scared of Sasuke. It's whining got louder and shivered more.  
  
"Sasuke, how is that keeping him quiet? It's just making more noise," Shino said.  
  
"Just watch," Sasuke said as his hand finally touched Akamaru's head. Sasuke stared deep into Akamaru's eyes. Unbeknowst to anyone else, Sasuke's Sharingan came to the surface of his eyes. It began spinning, slowly at first, but then picking up speed. Akamaru tried to look away, but it couldn't move. The others just looked on at Sasuke and Akamaru.  
  
"S-Sasuke-kun, what are you doing to Akamaru-kun?" Hinata asked.  
  
Sasuke just ignored Hinata and continued to focus on Akamaru. Suddenly, Akamaru began to howl, like he was in pain and began to shake in fear under Sasuke's hand. Something had been done to Kiba's dog.  
  
"Akamaru!" Kiba yelled, "Come on, buddy! What's wrong?"  
  
The dog gave no response as Sasuke continued what he was doing to Akamaru. It's howling became louder, and it shook more violently, until suddenly, it stopped. For a moment, it looked like Akamaru was calm again. Then the dog collapsed, panting for air.  
  
"Akamaru! Akamaru!" Kiba called to his dog. Then he turned to Sasuke, "What did you do to my dog, Uchiha?!"  
  
"I got him to be quiet, like Shino wanted," Sasuke said as he got up with his Sharingan Eye finally stopped spinning, "Never did like that dog, always howling like it was head of the class."  
  
"Kiba-kun, is Akamaru-kun all right?" Hinata asked as she and Kurenai bent down to join Kiba in trying to get Akamaru to wake up.  
  
"I don't know, Hinata," Kurenai said as she looked at the poor dog.  
  
Kiba turned angrily to Sasuke, "Tell me, Sasuke! What did you do to Akamaru?"  
  
"I told you, I got him to be quiet. But that's beside the point. Have you seen Naruto?" Sasuke said calmly.  
  
"I ASKED YOU WHAT YOU DID TO MY DOG, YOU BASTARD!!" Kiba screamed as he charged towards Sasuke with immense hatred. Sasuke simply put a hand in front of himself to stop Kiba and it seemed to work.  
  
"You want an answer? Then look into my eyes, Kiba-kun," Sasuke told him, with a bit of taunting in his tone. Kiba complied and he saw Sasuke's Sharingan spinning again. Kiba then started screaming and held his head in his hands.  
  
"STOP IT!! STOP IT!! GET OUT OF MY HEAD, SASUKE!!" Kiba yelled as he thrashed about violently, "AAAAAAHHHHHH!!!"  
  
"Now I'll ask you again," Sasuke said as he turned to Hinata, "Have you seen Naruto?"  
  
Hinata shivered, hoping not to end up with the same fate as Akamaru and Kiba. Sasuke advanced menacingly on Hinata, smiling as if something within him had taken control and Sasuke liked it.  
  
"Sasuke, STOP!" Shino said as he stood between Sasuke and Hinata.  
  
"I'll stop when you tell me where Naruto is," Sasuke said simply.  
  
"All right! He came by yesterday to talk about his dinner date with Sakura," Shino admitted, "He's probably there right now."  
  
"Thank you," Sasuke said as he turned to leave, "Your teammates will be fine. I just used a Sharingan technique on them."  
  
"How long will Kiba and Akamaru be like this?" Kurenai demanded.  
  
Sasuke simply turned and looked at Kurenai, with one hand holding Hinata and the other on Akamaru, both comforting them, Shino looking at Sasuke in disbelief and Kiba still screaming his head off.  
  
"How should I know?" he said as he ran off towards Haruno Sakura's house, and was sure that Naruto was still there.  
  
_That was low power_, Sasuke thought as he continued to run, _Let's see how full power is when I go up against you, Naruto-kun._

* * *

The meeting was still fresh in Tsunade's mind, even though she was halfway back to Konohagakure, and was now resting in a small hotel. She, herself, wasn't too happy with the idea she presented to the Council, but it was all she had. And if it didn't work, this monster would continue to ravage through the entire ninja world, eventually destroying the very way of the shinobi.  
  
The Kage Council had agreed to Tsunade's idea, but it was with some reluctance to it. First was to locate this monster and try and figure out where its headed. Then they were to locate Naruto and undo the seal the Forth Hokage had made on him and unleash Kyubi. Hopefully they could reason with it and send Kyubi to stop this monstrosity. Finally, after Kyubi had done its service, they'd seal it back into Naruto. She wasn't happy with it, and wasn't entirely sure she'd done the right thing by suggesting it, but it was all she had. Now she had the Council's consent to execute her plan.  
  
Easier said than done.  
  
Tsunade had sent some of her bodyguards to track the monster and find out where it was headed while she and her remaining bodyguards headed back to Konohagakure to find Naruto. The tough part of the whole thing was unleashing the monster within Naruto and convincing it to work with them. Maybe Naruto could reason with it since it had a connection to the nine- tails.  
  
The plan had seemed like a good idea when she first thought of it, but the more she thought about it, the more she wished she never thought of it in the first place. Her first decision as Hokage and she may have already blown it.  
  
"Hokage-sama," one of the bodyguard shinobi asked, "Are you all right?"  
  
"Hmm?" Tsunade asked, "Oh, yes. I'm fine, thank you."  
  
"You don't look like it, Hokage-sama. Pardon my rudeness, but what is wrong? Can I help in some way?"  
  
"Well, you could listen."  
  
"My ears are yours, Hokage-sama."  
  
"First of all, stop calling me Hokage-sama so much. It gets kind of annoying after a while."  
  
"Yes. Sorry, Hokage-sama."  
  
Tsunade sighed. "It's my decision at the Council. I'm worried about what I've done. Or what I'm about to do. I don't know what I was thinking when I suggested it. I'm not Hokage for two months and this comes up. I'm beginning to wonder if I'm really fit to lead the village."  
  
"Of course you are! You are the Hokage! The one person who best represents the qualities of the ninjas in our country!"  
  
"Tell me, what are my qualities that suit me for this?"  
  
"Well, you're brave. You become courageous when you need to be. You're also caring. You worry about the safety and well being of all the people in our country. And you're clear-minded. You always know what to do and don't let things get in the way of it. Not to mention you're self-sacrificing as well. You put others before yourself. Also you are wise. You know what to and not to do. You also have many more qualities that more than suit you to being Hokage-sama. To me, those qualities are more than enough proof that you are Hokage-sama. And as such, we are all inclined to follow you until the end."  
  
Tsunade thought over the words her bodyguard had just told her. She looked down to the ground and made sure he wasn't looking. "Thank you..." Tsunade said as she let some tears out, "I needed to hear that more than you could know."  
  
"It was my pleasure, Hokage-sama," the bodyguard said.  
  
"Don't call me that so much," Tsunade said, "Just call me...Tsunade."  
  
"Of course, Hoka...Tsunade."  
  
"What's your name?"  
  
"Me? I'm known as Yoshida Takeshi."  
  
"Thank you, Takeshi, for reassuring me," Tsunade said to her bodyguard as she wiped the tears from her face, "It helps knowing that people believe in me."  
  
"We all believe in you, Tsunade. That's why we are here," Takeshi told his superior.  
  
"Right," Tsunade said as she went over onto her bed and laid down, "I think its time we all went to sleep. We still have some ground to cover until we get back home. Good night."  
  
"Good night, Hokage-sama," they all said and while a couple fell asleep, a couple stayed awake to watch over their lord.  
  
Tsunade fell asleep and dreamed of the monster and what it could do. She dreamed of everyone following her on what she thought was right. She dreamed of Kyubi battling the monster and saving the ninja world.  
  
And she dreamed of what could happen if her plan didn't work.

* * *

Uzumaki Naruto was happily eating Sakura's mother's apple cobbler ice cream sundae with pudding and he had to agree with Sakura. It was the best dessert in Konohagakure. The flavours! The feel! It was too much! This was, dare he think it, better than ramen!  
  
"Mmmmm! Sakura-chan, your mom's dessert is great!" Naruto said inbetween bites.  
  
"Thank you, Naruto-kun," Mrs. Haruno smiled as she took a bite of her own creation.  
  
"I'm glad you like it, Naruto-kun," Sakura smiled at Naruto who was now gobbling it down his throat.  
  
"I was right to come along for this," Jiraiya said, "the dessert is more than enough for me!"  
  
"My wife does make great desserts," Mr. Haruno smiled as he took the last bite of his dessert.  
  
"Hey Gaara, aren't you gonna eat your apple cobbler ice cream sundae with pudding?" Temari asked as she took a big bite of her own delectable dessert, "It's really good!"  
  
"..." Gaara said as he stared at it, "I never...really had...sweets before..."  
  
"It's great, Gaara! Try it!" Naruto insisted.  
  
"You won't regret it, I swear," Sakura said.  
  
"...all right," Gaara said as he moved his hand to the cup. He grabbed his spoon and dug it deep into the dessert. He pulled it up to his face, sniffed it and then took a bite.  
  
Everyone waited for Gaara's reaction to the dessert as he chewed and swallowed it. They saw his eyes widen and a grin go upon his face.  
  
"This is amazing. It's so...sweet. Delicious!" Gaara said as he took a few more bites of his dessert, "I've never had something like this before!"  
  
"See! You like it!" Temari said to her comrade.  
  
"Aw, man! I'm out already!" Naruto said sadly, "Can I have some more, Mrs. Haruno?"  
  
"Sorry, Naruto-kun. I would've but I used the leftovers to make Gaara's and Temari's."  
  
"Hey, Gaara," Naruto leaned over to Gaara who was sitting across from him and whispered, "Can I have some of yours?"  
  
"Naruto-kun!" Sakura said, "That's Gaara's! You had yours!"  
  
"I know, but it's soooo good!"  
  
"It is, isn't it?" Temari asked.  
  
"You know it is!" Jiraiya grinned.  
  
"So, Naruto..." Mr. Haruno said, "Do you like food other than my wife's?"  
  
"Sure! I like ramen, and ramen with miso, oh and ramen with miso and extra spice..." Naruto said, beginning to count of the many ways he like his ramen.  
  
"In my experience with Naruto, I found that if you give him ramen on a long trip, he'll shut up for quite a bit," Jiraiya said to Mr. Haruno.  
  
"...there's tons of ramen at my place! By the way, Gaara, Temari, I hope you like ramen," Naruto said as he continued to talk about ramen.  
  
"Looks like we'll have to if we're living with you from now on..." Temari stated.  
  
"Well, I guess I better be going," Jiraiya said as he got up, "I've got a lot to do for my work."  
  
"Yes, what do you do again, Jiraiya-sama?" Mrs. Haruno asked.  
  
"I'm the author of the famous Come-Come Paradise books!"  
  
"Oh, yeah. I saw them in a bookstore the other day," Mr. Haruno said as he leaned inwards towards Jiraiya, "You're really...descriptive."  
  
"I pride myself on my attention to detail in my books," Jiraiya smiled brightly.  
  
"I guess I better go, too," Naruto said as he stood up, "I have to get my place set up for Gaara, Temari and Kankuro when he gets back."  
  
"I can't wait to see your place," Temari said sarcastically.  
  
"I'm sure it'll be better than what we're used to," Gaara said as he stood up with Temari, "Thank you for the dessert."  
  
"Oh, yeah! Thanks, Mrs. Haruno!" Naruto said as he, Gaara and Temari bowed.  
  
"It was nothing. I'm glad you all enjoyed it so much," Mrs. Haruno smiled at the three young ninjas as they headed for the door.  
  
"I'll see you later, Sakura-chan," Naruto smiled at Sakura as he reached for the doorknob.  
  
"Okay, Naruto-kun. Bye!" she said to him as they walked to the door.  
  
"Bye!" Naruto said as he opened the door. As he faced the outside, he saw someone he didn't expect.  
  
He saw a dark haired boy in a black short-sleeved bodysuit. He had elbowpads and bandages wrapped around his arms and legs. His eyes were dark and full of determination.  
  
"Sasuke!" Naruto yelped in surprise, "What are you doing here?"  
  
Sasuke looked at Naruto, Sakura and her family behind him, Jiraiya and the two Sand ninjas behind him. "I might ask those two the same thing."  
  
"If you must know, we're living with him now," Gaara said as he looked at Sasuke, "But like Naruto said, 'What are you doing here?'"  
  
"To make a request to Naruto..." Sasuke said slowly and steadily so that everyone was hanging on his words.  
  
"...to fight."  
  
TO BE CONTINUED!  
  
Hmm, things are getting tense! Will Tsunade's plan work? Will Kiba and Akamaru be okay? And what will Naruto's response to Sasuke's request be? You can find out by sending in reviews! And look out for the next chapter out soon! 


	8. Showdown at Sunup

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of Naruto in any way whatsoever. Since summer's almost over, and you have to go back to school soon, this should ease the pain of the coming fall for all of you. Let us return to the story in progress...

Kyubi Unleashed

By DigiScanner-Shonen

Chapter 8: Showdown at Sunup

_Everything's so dark_, a form thought as he slumbered, _but why?_ _Why am I here in the dark?_

A voice called out the name that belonged to the person in the dark. It seemed worried about him.

_Someone worried about me? But who? I can't see them in this dark. Come to think of it, I can't see me in this dark. I can't tell if my eyes are closed or open. Maybe if I open them..._

The form opened his eyes and was met with the sight of a ceiling with a couple light fixtures and three figures standing over him, two of them were his age while the third was older. A boy with sunglasses, a girl with shy white eyes and a woman in a robe.

"Kiba-kun! You're awake!" Hyuga Hinata squealed, "I t-thought you were..."

"We all did, Hinata," Yuuhi Kurenai said as she put a hand on Hinata's shoulder to steady her, "Good to have you back, Kiba."

"I don't know, it might've been nice to keep him that way for a while..." the boy with sunglasses said.

"Shino-kun, don't say that!" Hinata said, "We're happy that Kiba-kun's awake."

"Oooh...my head..." Inuzuka Kiba groaned as he began to sit up and hold his head with his left hand, "Any one get the number of the truck?"

"There was no truck, Kiba," Shino told his teammate.

"Then what?"

"You've just come out of a coma-like state," his sensei told him.

"What happened?"

"You were hit by a technique that induced mental stress and pain severely on you just a few hours ago."

"What technique was it?" Kiba asked as he scratched his head.

"It w-was a..." Hinata began, but seemed to hesitate and then remained silent.

"It was a what, Hinata?"

"It was a Sharingan technique," Shino finished for Hinata, "You were screaming pretty loud."

"Sh-Sharingan?" Kiba wondered aloud. A Sharingan technique hit him? But who would use that kind of attack on Kiba?

Then he remembered.

"Sasuke!! It was Sasuke who did this!" Kiba yelled and started to try and move out of the bed, but was held back by his teammates, "When I get my hands on that baka, he's gonna..."

"Kiba! Calm down and keep quiet! This is a hospital!" Shino said as he tried to restrain him.

"Kiba-kun, p-please be quiet! You s-still need to rest!" Hinata added.

"You're not getting out of that bed yet, Inuzuka," Kurenai said as she pushed him back down onto the bed, "That's an order from your sensei."

"Grrrr...." Kiba growled, but then remembered who else was hit by Sasuke's attack, "Wait! Akamaru! Where's Akamaru?"

"Akamaru-kun's resting beside you, Kiba-kun," Hinata pointed to the left of the bed and Kiba leaned over and saw his friend calmly sleeping in a basket.

"That's one of the reasons we wanted you to keep quiet, Kiba. Akamaru's resting," Shino said, "He's come out of Sasuke's attack, but he still needs some rest."

"Akamaru..." Kiba said as he stared at his resting companion and clenched his fist, "Sasuke's gonna pay for this..."

"With the power Uchiha has now, I doubt you'll survive against him again."

"Cram it, Shino! I was just caught off guard, that's all!"

"I'm just trying to save your life, Kiba. But, then again, if you want to go back into that coma and not possibly come out of it ever again, be my guest."

"Enough, Shino. Try not to make Kiba feel worse. What we really need to focus on is Sasuke. I've never seen this technique before except maybe when..." Kurenai thought.

"W-when what?" Hinata asked her sensei.

"Uchiha's brother, Itachi, used that same technique on Hatake Kakashi, the leader of Team 7."

"That's the c-cell with Sasuke-kun, Sakura-chan and N-Naruto-kun, right?"

"Right, Hinata. Sasuke was the sole survivor of the Uchiha massacre a couple years ago. The Uchiha's were supposed to harbour the technique of the Sharingan Eye. The Sharingan is supposed to be very powerful. Not only can it copy jutsus, but also expel jutsus as well. Sasuke may have used one of the Sharingan techniques on Kiba and Akamaru. The trouble is I don't really know just what happened when Sasuke used the attack.

"That's where you come in, Kiba," Shino said, "You've got to fill us in on what happened to you. What did Sasuke do to you when he entered your head?"

"What did he do?" Kiba wondered, thinking back to what happened. He didn't really remember much of it, but he did remember some of it. He then shuddered at what he remembered, "I don't want to talk about it..."

"Kiba, you have to tell us."

"I don't want to, Shino..." Kiba said as he turned his face away from the others.

"Kiba, you don't have a choice. You have to tell us."

"I said I don't want to, Shino..."

"Kiba, this isn't about you and your vendetta against Sasuke anymore. We need to know how powerful and dangerous Sasuke could be now. He could possibly be a danger to everyone in Konohagakure," Kurenai told him.

"Especially Naruto-kun..." Hinata put in.

"Hmm? Why Naruto?"

"Sasuke came into the ramen bar looking for Naruto, remember?" Shino said, "We all know Sasuke and Naruto don't get along. I bet that Sasuke plans to use his new Sharingan powers on Naruto. Think of what could happen to the blonde idiot!"

"So? Naruto can take care of himself," Kiba said indifferently, with a bit of anger in his tone.

"Kiba-kun! Please! You have to tell us so we can help Naruto-kun!" Hinata begged, "I don't want anything bad to happen to him!"

"Don't push me, Hinata. You don't know what happened to me..."

"Kiba-kun! You once told me you wanted to help people and be a hero! Well now you have a chance to be one! Naruto-kun needs help if Sasuke-kun gets to him! Please! Please tell us..." Hinata begged desperately with tears in her eyes.

"Hinata..." Kiba began, "Fine, I'll tell you. But it's painful. Sasuke did something to me. He tortured me in my own mind. I begged for him to stop, but he didn't! He laughed at me! He enjoyed seeing me in pain! He tore my memory to pieces, then reassembled them and destroyed them again. Over and over and over! You could never know the pain and torture that was! He fractured my very soul. Just thinking and talking about it makes me feel like its happening all over again."

"Did Sasuke say anything while this was happening?" Kurenai asked her pupil.

"Yeah...yeah, he did..."

"What did he say?"

"He just said...that he was using the technique as a test..."

"A test?" Shino questioned.

"Yeah...and that the level of chakra he was using to execute it..." Kiba said and then turned to his teammates and said something that left them in shock.

"...was really low..."

* * *

"Fight? What now?" Uzumaki Naruto asked the boy in the doorway, blocking his exit from his girlfriend's house, "Sasuke, I don't want to fight now."

"I don't really think you have a choice in the matter, Naruto-kun."

"'Naruto-kun?' Sasuke, you're off your rocker!"

"Why do you have to fight Naruto-kun now, Sasuke-kun?" Haruno Sakura asked her teammate.

"Because now I believe I can finally beat him in battle," Sasuke said simply.

"You? Beat me? Yeah, like that'll happen," Naruto snorted.

"It will happen," Sasuke said to his rival's face, then he glanced to the others behind him, two former Sand shinobi, "Your friends over there will be watching it as I humiliate you and then crush you beneath my feet. Then they'll be next."

"Somehow I doubt that," Gaara said coolly.

Sasuke smirked and then looked back at Naruto and Sakura, "In fact, let's make this interesting. I'll take both you and the spook behind you at the same time."

"Sasuke-kun, that's suicide!" Sakura said, "Don't do this! Naruto-kun, don't accept the challenge."

"...I accept, Sasuke. And I'm gonna make you eat those words," Naruto smiled and looked back at the other boy in this conversation, "That is...if you're up for this, too."

"..." Gaara paused to think it over. He came to a conclusion, "Fine by me."

"Time and place, Sasuke?" Naruto asked and all Sakura could do was watch.

"Sunrise, the practice field where we became Team 7. I look forward to it, Naruto-kun..." Sasuke said as he turned and left the others.

"Same here, idiot," Naruto said to Sasuke's retreating back.

"Naruto-kun, do you realise what you've just done? What both you and Gaara have done?" Sakura asked him, "Sasuke'll crush you! I couldn't bear it if you got hurt!"

"Sakura-chan...stay out of the fight this time..." Naruto said quietly.

"But Naruto-kun..." Sakura started but then felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around to face Temari, who had also witnessed the challenge issue.

"Leave them be, Sakura. This is something they have to do," Temari said.

"But Temari, I can't let them destroy each other! And Gaara's also in the fight! Aren't you worried about him?"

"Gaara can take care of himself, so I'm not worried. This is just something the boys have to settle. We can only watch and hope, Sakura."

"Temari...I can't let Naruto-kun..."

"We'd better be going," Temari said, "We've wasted enough time here and Naruto and Gaara need some rest before sunrise."

"Right, let's go..." Gaara said as he stepped out into the street and Temari followed. Naruto was just about to join them in when he felt Sakura's hand on his shoulder. He turned to face her.

"Naruto-kun, please...Don't fight Sasuke tomorrow..."

"Sakura-chan...I told you before...don't interfere this time..."

"But..."

"I'll be fine, Sakura-chan. Besides, Sasuke's been asking for this for a long time now. It'll just be a fracture to his ego for a while."

"Naruto-kun...don't..." Sakura begged with pleading eyes as she tugged at him. Naruto brushed her hand off of him and stepped into the street.

"Come on, guys. I'll show you my place, but you'll have to keep up!" Naruto said as he leapt off into the shadows with Gaara and Temari following suit.

She couldn't believe Naruto was going to go through with the fight tomorrow. And she couldn't do a thing about it. Sakura closed the door and told her parents she was going up to her room. She flopped down onto her bed and wondered about what was going to happen tomorrow between Naruto, Gaara and Sasuke.

And she would be helpless to stop it.

* * *

Tsunade woke with a start, gasping for air. She had a nightmare about what would happen if Kyubi was separated from Naruto and decided to turn against the ninjas. It would destroy everyone in Konohagakure and possibly the ninja world. All those dead bodies, all the blood and violence...

And it would be her fault for all of it.

"Tsunade! Are you all right?" Takeshi asked as he came over to Tsunade to see what was wrong with the ruler of his village.

"I'm...I'm fine, Takeshi..." Tsunade said in between gasps, "It was just a bad dream. What time is it?"

"It's four in the morning."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"Oh..." Tsunade said. Maybe she could go back to sleep after that nightmare, but wasn't sure she could.

"Was the dream that horrible?"

"Yes...all of it..." the Hokage told her bodyguard, "I'm starting to think this was all a bad idea. Why'd I have to suggest unleashing Kyubi?"

"You did what you thought was right for everyone by suggesting it to the Kage Council. I thought it was a wise decision."

"Sure, you do. But the other Kages were very hesitant about it before giving me the go ahead. There's a big chance this could backfire and we'll all be in the afterlife before the day is done."

"The best we can all do is give it a shot and if it fails...well, there's no one I had more pleasure serving under," Takeshi told his superior.

"That still doesn't reassure me about this."

"Maybe talking about the dream will help?"

"Perhaps..."

"What happened in the dream, Tsunade?"

"Well, it starts with me breaking the seal on Naruto-kun. Naturally, Kyubi comes out in all its fearsome glory and we all cower in fear. I step forward and try to ask it to help us fight the monster that heading for Konohagakure. But it refuses and starts to destroy everything with its tails. There's all this destruction and the village is destroyed. Then it meets up with this monster and they agree to work together to destroy the entire world. There are bodies everywhere, blood spilled, homes decimated..." Tsunade told him while fighting back tears.

"Is that all?"

"No, there's a little more. All these voices then start chanting that its all my fault that this has happened. Everything will be destroyed and the world end. And it'll be all my fault. It'll be all my fault, Takeshi..." Tsunade said as she cried openly.

"Hokage-sama...I told you before, we'll follow you to whatever end," Takeshi said as he put a comforting hand on the Hokage's shoulder, "Whether its right or wrong, we'll go with you. You have to take a chance once in a while. We can only take a chance on this and hope it'll work. If it doesn't, well at least we tried."

Tsunade turned to look at Takeshi and wiped her face of her tears. "You're right. I can only take a chance on something like this and hope it works. And besides, I'm the Hokage. I'm supposed to be strong and be sure of everything. I can't cry."

"Crying and uncertainty is human. Just because you're Hokage doesn't mean you can't be human once in a while."

"Thanks, Takeshi," Tsunade said as she got up off her bed, "Thanks again for reassuring me."

"It's what I'm here for, Hokage-sama. To serve," Takeshi said, "But now I can't get back to sleep."

"I don't think I can get back to sleep either. Since we're up, we might as well make an early start to get back home. Go wake the others. We'll leave as soon as I'm ready."

"Right," Takeshi said as he went to wake his fellow bodyguards as Tsunade went into the bathroom to get ready to continue the journey home. She splashed some water onto her face and looked at herself in the mirror. Takeshi was right, they had to take a chance. But one thing was for sure.

She didn't look her best at four in the morning.

* * *

Uzumaki Naruto barely slept last night. He was still excited about what would happen today. He'd face off against Uchiha Sasuke, his rival and they'd at last see who was more powerful. Plus, he was now living with Gaara and Temari, and soon Kankuro when he returned from the Sand Country. It did get pretty lonely living by yourself for a long time. He was glad he could at last live with someone who also knew the pain of being an outsider and understand what it was to live with a monster inside you.

He wasn't only excited, but he was also a bit sad. He didn't want to push Sakura off, but he had to. It would be to keep her out of harm's way when the fight started. Even though she had pleaded to him to not fight Sasuke in fear that they would both get hurt and she could to nothing to stop it. She wouldn't understand what was happening between him and Sasuke. This was something he had to do.

Naruto went to the window beside his bed and looked out it, but he found that he wasn't alone. Beside him was Gaara, wide awake and staring straight out across the village.

"You can't sleep either?" Naruto asked.

"I can't for two reasons."

"And they would be...?"

"Firstly, Shusaku will come out if I ever sleep and destroy everything. I'm surprised you forgot that from our last battle?"

"Oh, yeah..." Naruto said sheepishly. He did kind of forget the long battle he and Gaara had during the attack the evil Orochimaru composed on the village all those months ago. It left both of them exhausted, beaten and on level ground with each other. "And the other reason being?"

"I'm looking forward to the fight with Uchiha as well..."

"You excited, too?"

"I wouldn't say excited, but...anxious."

"Why?"

"Our fight in the Chuunin Tournament never reached a conclusion so we finished it during the attack. I had sensed that Uchiha had darkness in his heart and soul as well as I do. I wanted to test his against mine. I left him bruised and I had won the fight. I was going to finish him, until you...stepped in."

"Right, I remember..."

"Since our fight, Naruto, I've changed. The darkness inside me has lifted a bit and I can see some light. And because of that, I feel stronger with the light than the dark. But Uchiha..."

"He still has some of the darkness, doesn't he?" Naruto finished for Gaara.

"Yes. I wish to test my new strength against him in this fight. Perhaps we can lift the veil of darkness within Uchiha and make him see the truth..."

"Personally, I just want to give Sasuke the butt-whooping I always wanted to give to him," Naruto said as he looked at Gaara, still serious and calm, "Don't you ever lighten up?"

"Lighten up?"

"Yeah, you know. Stop being serious and have some fun and be normal. Everything has to be a melodrama with you, doesn't it? Why don't you have some fun for once? You were a kid before, weren't you? Didn't you have fun?"

"...I...I was the outsider...I never knew the meaning of fun..."

"Not even a smidget?"

"Before I met you, Naruto...I thought destroying my enemies, testing my strength to theirs, taking their lives...I thought that was...fun..."

"Dude, you seriously need to loosen up," Naruto told the boy next to him, "In fact, after the fight, I'll teach you the very definition of fun. It'll be great, Gaara! You just wait and see!"

"Really...You'd do that for me?"

"Well, yeah! I didn't just offer you my place to stay just so I could have a roommate. I figure you need to have some fun badly. You're stiff as a board! Look at you! The eternally unhappy face, the 'woe is me, I had a tragic childhood' attitude, the firm as stone body language. You, my friend, are in desperate need of a giant dose of extra fun."

"..." Gaara thought this all over as he continued to stare out the window.

"And stop it with the silence act! You give a person the impression that you're always thinking! You need to stop thinking once in a while! Let your impulses guide you! Well, that and your heart too, I guess..."

"Like you?"

"Heck yeah! Look at me! I follow the things inside me and I barely think at all! And check me out today!" Naruto said as he began to strike a bunch of poses.

"...you're a real role model."

"I sure am! I'm the definition of role model!" Naruto said as he struck another pose that made him look like a hero flying through the skies. Unfortunately, gravity took its toll and he fell over onto the floor and hit his head. "YEOW!!" Naruto yelled as he held his throbbing head. As Naruto looked up at Gaara, he saw something he didn't think he'd ever see Gaara do.

Gaara was laughing.

Not a laugh of evil, a laugh of hesitance or even a laugh of sympathy. It was a regular, having fun laugh.

"See? That's the kind of thing I'm talking about! I made you laugh! You're having fun already!" Naruto said as he dusted himself off and got up. Then Naruto started laughing too.

This moment between the two boys didn't last too long as something shot through the blinds that covered Naruto's window. It was the first rays of sunlight. The two both turned towards the rising sun and all laughter ceased. Now it was time to be serious again.

"Go wake up Temari," Gaara told Naruto and Naruto conceded with the request. In less than a minute, Temari was up and already dressed. Another minute and Naruto was dressed in his usual attire and the three stared out the window.

Naruto had been waiting for this. It was the beginning of dawn, the time of Sasuke's challenge. He couldn't wait for the fight.

"And so comes the dawn..." Gaara said as they all looked out the window towards the sunrise, remaining silent for a moment, contemplating what was about to happen. They then moved across Naruto's floor to the other side of the room and reached for the door. Temari opened it and they all exited Naruto's home. Naruto locked the door and soon they were off leaping across Konohagakure towards the place where Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke became Team 7.

_All right, Sasuke_, Naruto thought, _It's time to finish the fight we started earlier. And this time, they'll be no interruptions. I've waited for this day for a long time._

_I hope you're ready for a world of hurt._

* * *

Uchiha Sasuke stood in the middle of the field, waiting patiently for his opponents to arrive as the sun continued to rise upwards. While he waited, he was mentally preparing himself for the fight. He stood there, his eyes closed and his arms crossed across his chest, thinking about all the moves the others could make against him and how he could deflect them.

He was also thinking about all the power he now had thanks to that scroll he found. He didn't know who wrote it, or even if he was destined to find it, but he was glad he did. Thanks to that scroll, he had more power flowing through him than he had ever had before. Someday, he'd have to track down the author and thank him personally for helping him defeat Uzumaki Naruto, his rival.

This battle would be twice as sweet. Not only would he beat Naruto, but also Gaara of the Sand Village, whom he failed to beat during Orochimaru's attack. Killing two birds with one stone. Or rather, two ninjas with one overflowing power.

This would be a day long remembered for Uchiha Sasuke, prodigy of the Uchiha clan.

"Hmmm...so you've come," Sasuke said aloud with his eyes still closed.

"Yeah, we're here," came the voice of the blonde teammate of Sasuke's who had just landed a few feet away from him.

"Didn't think you'd come at all knowing you, dunce," Sasuke said as he opened his eyes and turned to face Naruto, Gaara and Temari, "Those two must've woken you up so they could get here and watch me wipe the floor with your ass."

"Just shut up, Sasuke and let's fight," Naruto said as he reached for a kunai from his hip-holster.

"Not just yet, dead last, I'm waiting for someone else..."

"What?! Who else did you tell about the fight?!"

"Ah, here they come now..."

"Huh?" Naruto turned and saw Sakura come running towards them, with a bit of relief on her face that they hadn't started fighting. He also saw his new mentor, Jiraiya of the Legendary Leaf Ninjas, also running towards them, but with not as much care as to get there too soon.

"What are they doing here, Sasuke? This was between you and me strictly!"

"And me..." Gaara noted to the others.

"Why not? The more, the merrier..." Sasuke said coldly, "And the more mourners for you. Besides, I thought you said you didn't have anyone...? I thought I might as well give you a chance to feel loved by others...for a change..."

"Sasuke..." Naruto growled.

"Naruto-kun! Don't!" came Sakura's voice as she joined the others, "Please! You can still walk away from this!"

"Yes, yes, idiot. Walk away from this chance now. This opportunity to beat me once and for all, to see who's the better of us. You even have a handicap, two against one. Walk away, dead last, walk away from this chance for us to finish the fight we started earlier. I think you should heed Sakura's words of wisdom, Naruto-kun."

"Sasuke! Stop it!" Sakura yelled at her comrade, "Naruto doesn't have to fight you!"

"Sakura-chan, stay out of this..." Naruto told her.

"But Naruto-kun, I couldn't stand to see the both of you hurt each other! So don't and we can all walk away from this, guilt-free of the stuff you may have done to each other! Please, Naruto-kun!!"

"Yeah, Naruto-kun, walk away guilt-free. Retreat, dead last," Sasuke taunted, "Go ahead. Heed Sakura's words and we'll find out who of us is really the stronger one. You never really could hold a candle up to me, Naruto-kun. You were dead last in the classes and you're dead last now...scaredy cat."

"Say that again..." Naruto growled.

"Scaredy cat. Scaredy cat, scaredy cat, scaredy cat," Sasuke repeated over and over.

"Sasuke!! Don't!" Sakura pleaded, "Naruto-kun! Don't fight!!"

"...I'm a scaredy cat, eh?" Naruto asked while he looked at Gaara who also signalled with his eyes that he was ready to fight, "I'm not so sure about the 'scaredy' part of it. Okay, maybe I've been afraid a couple of times in my life, but I always overcame it. And the 'cat' part..."

"Naruto-kun...please..."

"I'm not so sure about that either. In fact, I don't think your insult is accurate about me. More like it's about you, scaredy cat. Who saved you from Orochimaru's snake in the Chuunin Exam? You were shaking like a cat in the rain then..."

"Don't...please..."

"Who wasn't afraid to be open with others and as a result, made a bunch of new friends? You stood by yourself, all alone all that time. And who refused to give in to others, even against all odds? You were ready to quit, but I wasn't going to go down without a fight. Your insult, Sasuke...is more about you."

Sasuke snorted indifferently.

"In fact, I don't think you know what animal to call me when you want to insult me. I'm not a cat, for one. And let me guess you're next insult, 'dumb as a moose?' I don't think so, I'm not a moose either. To tell you the truth, Sasuke, I'm a different kind of animal..."

"Naruto-kun, don't do this..." Sakura cried, then felt a large hand on her shoulder. She turned around to face Jiraiya, Naruto's mentor.

"Let them be. It'll be good to get it out of their systems. Plus, I'd like to evaluate Naruto on how strong he's become..." Jiraiya said.

"How strong?"

"Yes. You may not know it from the look of him, but he's more powerful than he looks, Sakura. Not only can he dish out what he says, he backs it up 110%."

"Naruto-kun..." Sakura said as she looked back at Naruto who was just finishing what he was saying.

"They all said it at one point or another about me. I'll give you a hint about what I really am..." Naruto smirked.

"A pathetic excuse for a ninja?" Sasuke asked.

"No...I'm crazy..."

"?! Crazy? What kind of animal has that trait?"

"Crazy...LIKE A FOX!!!" Naruto yelled as he leapt towards Sasuke with Gaara in close pursuit. This was it. The long awaited battle between the rivals. Uzumaki Naruto, with Gaara, versus Uchiha Sasuke.

But none of them even suspected that another foe was coming, ever closer, to Konohagakure...

TO BE CONTINUED!

Gasp! Shock! Another cliffhanger! This one to one of the highlights of the story! Naruto and Gaara Vs. Sasuke!! Of course, to find out what will happen, there's only one way and hopefully you'll know what that is...reviews!


	9. Fall of the Cherry Blossom

Disclaimer: Once more, I do not own any of the characters of Naruto in any way. I know some of you may get tired of seeing this, but it's something I do. But for now let us get back to where we left off, with the big fight between the rivals...

**Kyubi Unleashed**

**By DigiScanner-Shonen**

**Chapter 9: Fall of the Cherry Blossom**

The battle had gone on for a few minutes now, and neither side looked to show any sign of tiring. At first, it was just punches, kicks and blocks between the three. Then, they went on to use shinobi weapons they had brought for this fight.

And now, they were using jutsus.

Haruno Sakura couldn't believe what she was seeing. She didn't want to believe it. Uzumaki Naruto, her boyfriend, had just released the signs to execute his infamous Shadow Replication jutsu, which now surrounded Uchiha Sasuke on all sides. They all charged towards Sasuke, who had leapt up into the air and was quickly executing the seals to release his new trademark jutsu, the Phoenix Flower, when he noticed a shadow behind him. Before he could turn, he felt a sharp stab of pain in his back and the impact of the ground on his stomach. The Naruto clones took advantage of this and started pounding on Sasuke.

_Naruto-kun, Gaara, why?_ Sakura thought as she stared in horror, _Why do this?_

"It's something they have to do."

"What?" Sakura said as she turned to Jiraiya, who had somehow sensed what she was thinking at that moment.

"Sasuke issued a challenge to the both of them and its in a man's nature to take on any challenges that should come to them," Jiraiya said, "Naruto has always wanted to take on Sasuke and show that he's the better of the two. Gaara, however, wants to test his newfound belief against Sasuke's. Meanwhile, Sasuke believes he now has the power to defeat his brother and is now testing how powerful it is against both his rival and the one who has renounced his previous ways. They are all challenging not only each other, but also themselves."

"But why do men do these things?"

"Well, you're not a guy, so you wouldn't understand," Jiraiya said smugly, "This is also a test for Naruto."

"Test...?"

"To see how much stronger he's become since the Academy. He's using his power and pushing it to the limit to see how strong he is."

"How strong is...?"

Before Sakura could finish her question, there was a burst of energy from the Naruto clone dogpile that was on top of Sasuke. The clones each disappeared when the energy blast hit them and the real Naruto was sent flying backwards, only to be caught by Gaara's sand. The sand stood Naruto upright before disappearing and Gaara looked over to his comrade to make sure he was okay. Naruto nodded in response and the two of them looked over to the glowing power just a short distance from the allies. There stood Sasuke, emitting powerful chakra, with his right hand crackling with more than chakra than the rest of the body, his Sharingan staring back at the two and his skin beginning to be covered with black marks. His Curse Seal was activating.

"That all you got, Naruto-kun?" Sasuke taunted and extended his right hand, which he then waved back and forth, a 'Bring-it-on' gesture.

"Not quite," Naruto grinned, "Ready Gaara?"

Gaara nodded in response.

"GO!!" Naruto called as the three dashed towards each other, each powering up with chakra. Gaara's hand turned into sand which reshaped into a spear of sorts, Sasuke's chakra emitting hand crackled even more fiercely with what looked like electric energy and Naruto had Gaara's free hand moving quickly over Naruto's while Naruto's right hand began to form a spinning ball of chakra. Naruto and Gaara's chakra were mixing to form a powerful move for Naruto. Now, as the three were in close range, they extended their hands and called out their attacks.

"Chidori!!" Sasuke yelled as he thrust his crackling arm in front of him.

"Sand Spear!!" Gaara screamed as he thrust his solid sand arm in front of him.

"Rasengan!!" Naruto cried as he thrust his chakra ball holding arm in front of him.

As the three attacks collided, the effects of their mixing were gigantic.

* * *

_Almost there, almost there..._

Tsunade was running with Takeshi and her other bodyguards towards Konohagakure, which was within sight distance. It would be good to be back home, but she didn't have time for that. She had work to do as soon as she got there.

"Does everyone remember the plan?" Tsunade asked as they got closer to the village.

"Yes, Hokage-sama!!" They replied.

"Good!" Tsunade told them, "Use force if you have to, but try to avoid doing so!"

"Yes Hokage-sama!"

The plan was to search the village for Uzumaki Naruto, the boy with Kyubi sealed inside of him, and get him to come with them to see Tsunade. Tsunade, in the meanwhile, would go with Takeshi and search the Konoha Archives for unseal and reseal scrolls. She would memorise the scrolls and use the techniques to release the seal on Naruto and unleash Kyubi once they had reached an agreement on what to do against the approaching monster. Once Kyubi had done its service, she'd seal it back into Naruto, with its co-operativeness or not. Yes, she'd lose her life in the process, but it was for the good of Konohagakure and the ninja world. She knew what she was doing.

At least, she thought she did.

_No time for second thoughts, _the Hokage told herself, _this is what I presented to the Kage Council and this is what I have to do. I must unleash Kyubi for the good of ninjas everywhere! I just hope Naruto and Kyubi will co-operate with this. Naruto maybe, but Kyubi..._

"Hokage-sama! The gate!" Takeshi called as they ran closer and closer to the gate, with the guards standing ready to defend their home.

"No time to slow down! Just show them our identification and go!!" Tsunade ordered as she withdrew her identification from her pockets and her bodyguards did the same. Just as they were a couple of feet in front of the guards, they leaped into the air and flung down their identifications to the guards, "We'll get them back later! Now go and find Naruto!"

"As you wish, Hokage-sama!!" they replied as they reached the top of the gate and leapt into different directions after briefly touching the gate.

"Tsunade!!" Takeshi suddenly called as they landed on the roof of a nearby house.

"What, Takeshi? We don't have time!" Tsunade told him.

"I just remembered what you said about Kyubi being uncontrollable."

"Yes?"

"I know of a scroll which could help Kyubi be more co-operative..."

"You do?"

"Yes, I heard about it when I was younger. It's a special scroll that not many have used. I've seen it in the archives, collecting dust. I'm sure it could help us tame Kyubi!"

"Where in the archives?"

"Somewhere in the restricted section."

"Take me to it, Takeshi!" Tsunade said as they headed in the direction of the archives.

_A scroll that could help us control Kyubi? Why wasn't this thought of years ago when it first attacked?_ Tsunade thought as they went on their way, _No matter. Soon as we find it, our chances for survival should increase, even by a mere percentage. But the restricted section in the archives has been known to erase dangerous jutsus on occasion._

_I just pray that scroll is still in the archives if its not too dangerous a technique._

* * *

"Did you feel that?" a citizen said as he and his friends walked through the street.

"Feel what?" another asked.

"The earth shaking, stupid!" yet another told his friend.

"No, should I have?" the second citizen wondered.

"Maybe it's just me..." the third said.

"No, I felt it too," the first person said, "It felt like it was coming from one of the training grounds."

"The training grounds? No way!" the second said, "There's no way something that powerful could come from the training grounds."

"Hey! What was that about training grounds?"

"What?" the three citizens turned and saw a boy with sunglasses and a girl with white eyes staring back, "Why do you want to know?"

"B-because of o-our..." the girl started.

"Let me handle this, Hinata!" the boy whispered, "Because we're interested in the movements of the ground."

"A couple of shinobi interested in the earth?" the second citizen asked, "Why?"

"Just tell me!" the boy asked.

"Why should we, kid?" the third asked.

"You're really starting to bug me..."

"Wait! You're not..." the first began.

"Who? Who is he?" the second wondered.

"You're that kid from the bug-using clan, aren't you?"

"He is?"

"Well, duh!" the third said, "What was their name? Abambu...Abumble...Abudis..."

"Aburame. And yes, I'm one of them," the boy answered.

"The kid who was in the Chuunin Tournament? Shino, was it?" the first said.

"One and the same. Now tell me about the training ground!"

"And just why should we?" the third asked.

"Don't you know? They have powers over bugs! Next time you go outside, it could be your last!" the first told the third.

"Hey! You're right!" the third seemed to imagine something, then shivered. He turned to Shino and said, "All right. My friends and I just felt this tremble in the ground. It was almost as if powers were clashing or something. It seemed to come from one of the training grounds out west."

"Thank you," Shino said, "Come on, Hinata."

"Why is it so important?" the second one asked.

"...we can't say," Shino said as a bug emerged from his nose and landed onto Shino's finger. The boy whispered something to the bug and then it flew off towards the grounds to the west. A couple seconds after it flew off, Hinata and Shino followed.

"I still don't know why it's so important..."

"Will you just shut up?" the third asked.

* * *

The shaking had stopped as Naruto opened his eyes. He found himself lying face down on the ground, with the after effects of the attack still felt. He turned over to his side and found Gaara, lying beside a tree, knocked out cold. A few feet from Gaara was Temari, lying spread out on her back with her large fan just short of her hand. Turning to the other side, he saw his Sakura on her stomach behind Jiraiya on his back, both knocked out by the mass of energy just a few short moments ago. And of course, Sasuke was quite aways from him, in the same shape and position as Naruto except lying face up.

Not wanting to be the inferior one, Naruto slowly picked himself up and looked at his body. His clothes were dirty, he had wounds all over and his head was spinning. Heading over to where Sakura was, he kneeled down to check her over. She was still alive, just had the wind knocked out of her. Lucky that Jiraiya was there and had taken the full force of the blow.

_Maybe Sakura-chan's right, _Naruto thought as he looked at the others, _Maybe we should stop this before someone really gets hurt._

"...are you backing out, Naruto-kun?"

"..."

"You're giving up, aren't you?" Sasuke said as he overshadowed Naruto, his body now almost completely covered by the Curse Seal marks, "Your handicap is gone. Your friends have been knocked out. Are you going to run away?"

"Sasuke...we've got to stop this..."

"You're afraid of me, aren't you? You know you can't win against me. I've gotten too powerful. Your little girlfriend may be fine, but she's weak. She had that oaf Jiraiya protecting her."

"Sasuke..." Naruto growled as he clenched his fist.

"The Sand Siblings staying with you? They're runaways. Outcasts. Feared because of their power. They may have been powerful during the Chuunin Exam, but times have changed. Gaara's gone soft. He no longer is powerful. Those without power are insects. And insects should be squashed."

"Sasuke...you..." Naruto could feel the anger rising within him and his own power mixing with something else inside him.

"Pathetic, aren't they?" Sasuke said as used his hand to indicate who he was talking about, "Pathetic little insects. Insects without power. Not just these people, no. Rock Lee...the Hyuugas...Kakashi...even the new Hokage. All of them, insects. Perhaps I should play exterminator."

"You wouldn't dare..."

"Oh, but I would. And maybe," Sasuke said as he extended his hand and it began to crackle with his chakra towards one of the people in the area, "I should start with your girlfriend."

That was it.

"SASUKE!!!!" Naruto screamed as a burst of energy emitted from him and Sasuke was forced to brace himself from the outburst. The energy was stinging, just being in its way was damaging. He was forced to close his eyes to prevent them from damage.

The energy stopped and Sasuke could open his eyes again. He saw Naruto, burning with chakra. Except he looked different. The marks on his cheeks were now many dark marks, looking almost like whiskers. His blue eyes were now devoid to little slits. And it seemed for a moment that the chakra surrounding him was in the form of nine tails, all protruding from his rear.

"**NO ONE THREATENS SAKURA-CHAN!!!**" Naruto yelled as all of a sudden, he was in Sasuke's face and before he could react, a flurry of punches rained down on the Uchiha survivor. Sasuke couldn't defend against it. His Sharingan went into overdrive, trying to copy Naruto's moves. All Sasuke could do was watch as Naruto landed hit after hit on him.

Then, Naruto pulled back. Sasuke didn't give him an inch, because then, it was his turn. Doing the exact same punches Naruto just did, Sasuke thought he had the upper hand, but he noticed that none of them were hitting. The chakra surrounding Naruto had formed a kind of barrier, preventing Sasuke from connecting with Naruto. Of course, it only worked one way as Naruto pulled his fist back and landed one good punch on Sasuke's gut.

Sasuke was sent careening back as he could still feel the stinging pain. It wasn't just the punch, the chakra had also been driven into Sasuke, causing more pain. As Sasuke tried to stop flying backwards, Naruto had circled behind him and delivered another attack to Sasuke's back. Sasuke flew again through the air, but turned around and executed his Phoenix Flower attack at Naruto. The giant flame engulfed Naruto and it looked as if the blonde ninja was burnt to a crisp. Sasuke smirked, knowing that victory was in his grasp.

If he looked up, however, he would've managed to dodge the onslaught of blows that came from Naruto.

* * *

_"SASUKE!!!!"_

_"Huh?"_

Sakura opened her eyes and sat up from where she was. She looked on as Naruto unleashed the power within him and began to beat down Sasuke. She couldn't believe this was the same Naruto she was teammates with. There was something different, almost animal, to him.

_Naruto-kun, what are doing? _She asked herself as Naruto began punching Sasuke, _I thought the fight was done after that blast. Why are you still fighting Sasuke?_

Sakura managed to spot Gaara and Temari a little ways from her. She went over to them to check on them. She woke up Temari first. Temari groaned as Sakura roused her from being knocked out.

"Oww...ow, ow, ow..." Temari groaned, "It feels like every part in my part aches..."

"I think it came from the mixture of Naruto, Gaara and Sasuke's attacks," Sakura said, "It's a miracle we survived."

"Actually, it's not that surprising..."

"What do you mean?"

"I think they were only going half power on that one..."

"Say what!?"

"Gaara wanted to conserve his energy for later, but I think right now he's using all of it to combat Shusaku's re-emergence since he's unconscious," Temari pointed out as she and Sakura noticed that Gaara was turning and grunting as if he was holding something back, "Naruto and Sasuke however, are using all of it now, but it looks like Sasuke's power isn't enough."

"No!" Sakura turned and saw Sasuke pounded into the ground as Naruto unleashed his fury on the boy, "Naruto-kun, stop!!"

"He can't hear you. He's being controlled..."

"Controlled by what?"

"..."

"Temari, tell me! What's wrong with Naruto and Gaara?"

"Naruto told me not to tell you, Sakura."

"Temari, I have to know! Please! Naruto-kun is mercilessly beating Sasuke! If he keeps this up, Sasuke could...please! Tell me!"

"..."

"Please..." Sakura looked into Temari's eyes with a pleading look.

"...all right..." Temari reluctantly said, "Naruto probably won't trust me again after this, but if it's to help save a life..."

"It is."

"You know how everyone has chakra which gives them power?"

"Yes."

"Well, Naruto and Gaara have a kind of chakra booster inside the both of them. When either of them run out, the chakra booster kicks in and both become very powerful and dangerous."

"What is this chakra booster?"

"It controls them should they resort to it. Because the booster isn't really a thing the two of them can control."

"Then what is it?"

"..."

"Temari, you said you'd tell me..."

"...do you remember what happened to Gaara when he was fighting Sasuke during the attack a few months ago?"

"He became a..." Sakura gasped in realisation.

"The same thing is happening to Naruto now."

"Nooo!!" Sakura said as she dashed over to where Sasuke and Naruto were fighting.

"Sakura, wait!!"

_I have to stop Naruto-kun. I can't let him become a monster! _Sakura thought urgently as she came closer to the fight, _He can't become the same as Gaara! He can't! I won't let him!_

"Naruto-kun, stop!" Sakura called as she reached out onto Naruto's shoulder. Naruto didn't know it was her and momentarily turning away from Sasuke, he sent Sakura to the ground. As he extended his arm to punch her, Sakura screamed aloud Naruto's name.

It seemed to hit dead on because he stopped dead in his tracks.

His fist was just an inch from Sakura's face. Sakura looked at Naruto's face and his fierce slit-eyes stared back. He was snarling and growling, but he looked as if he was aware, however slight, that it was her who had called out his name.

"Naruto-kun...I know you can hear me..." Sakura said, "Stop this...leave Sasuke alone, you've done enough to him..."

"**Grrrrrr...**"

"Fight it, Naruto! Don't give into the monster within you! Please, fight it! Don't become like Gaara back to who you back to me..."

"**Ssss...Sa...Sakur...**" Naruto seemed to growl. It looked as if he was remembering who he was.

"That's it, Naruto-kun! Remember me! Remember you! Remember!" Sakura said as she turned to Sasuke and began to help him up, "You like ramen! You want to become the Hokage! You train hard! You care about me!"

"**Ssss...Sakura...Sakura-chan!**" Naruto said as he remembered who Sakura was, and it looked as if he knew who he was.

"You're almost there, Naruto-kun! Keep fighting it! Keep remembering me and you!" Sakura said as she helped Sasuke to his feet. He looked bruised and beaten, but he'd live, "Remember us! Remember!!"

"**Sakura-chan!!"** Naruto said as the marks on his face became dimmer, the slits in his eyes became rounder and his voice began to soften, "**I remember!**"

"Good! Keep going!" Sakura said as she turned around and checked on Sasuke again. He had a fainted look on him and Sakura was about to prop Sasuke over her to help him get medical attention, but she didn't notice the glint in his eye as no one noticed his hand charging up one last time, "You're almost back! Come back and we can go for rame--"

Sakura's eyes became wide as she felt a searing pain inside her. She saw Naruto gasping in horror. Sakura looked down and saw Sasuke's hand piercing through her left shoulder, just above her heart. Blood was spilling from the wound. She couldn't believe it.

_Sasuke...why? _Sakura thought as Sasuke pulled back his hand from Sakura's shoulder and the blood fully spilled from her, _No...I was so close...Naruto-kun was almost...Sasuke, you really...Temari was right...Do you have it, too, Sasuke...no...why...why would he do this to me...Sasuke...have you really...it can't be...but why...why, Sasuke?_

_Why?_

With that last thought, Sakura dropped to the ground, eyes closed and blood spilling.

* * *

"Sakura-chan!!" Naruto screamed as he dropped to his knees and took a hold of her, "No!! Sakura-chan!!!"

He couldn't believe it. He wouldn't believe it. Naruto put his hand onto her cheek. It wasn't supposed to be like this. No, it wasn't. He tried several times to check else on her body, but the result was the same. She was cold. Oh, so cold...

One minute she was there in front of him, encouraging him to return to his normal self, the next she was lying cold on the ground, a red puddle forming from her shoulder area. This wasn't happening! He couldn't lose her! He couldn't bear it!

"Sasuke!!" Naruto gritted his teeth as Sasuke dropped to his knees, his last bit of energy spent, "Sasuke, what have you done?!"

"...what? What did...I do...?" Sasuke asked as he held his head. His eyes were back to normal, his Curse Seal marks were gone and it seemed as if he was waking from a dream.

"You just impaled Sakura-chan!!"

"I did what!?" Sasuke said as he looked down at Sakura in Naruto's arms and realised what he had just done, "...my God...no..."

"Why!! Why, Sasuke?!" Naruto demanded as tears began to flow from his eyes.

"I couldn't have...but I...no...God, no..." Sasuke said as he looked as his hands, reddened with his teammate's blood, "I didn't mean...the 't get enough...so arrogant...thought I was invincible...felt so strange...had the power...no...didn't realise it was her...oh Lord...what have I done..."

"You just hurt my girlfriend, that's what!" Naruto said as his tears flew and mixed with Sakura's blood, "I can't believe you...I never thought you would stoop that low...she could be...and its all your fault...IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT SHE'S LIKE THIS!!!"

"No..." Sasuke said as he stood up and looked around at everything he had done. He was seeing clearly the carnage of his doing, "I can't...he lied..."

"Who?"

"He lied...no...Sakura...God no...what have I done..."

"Who lied, Sasuke?"

"My fault...my comrade...my power...my doing..."

"Who lied, Sasuke?" Naruto repeated. But Sasuke wasn't listening. He was still dealing with the effects of what he had done.

"The power...Sakura...no..." Sasuke said as he backed away from what he saw with a look of horror on his face, "What have I done...? NOOOO!!!"

Sasuke ran off into the trees, away from Naruto.

"SASUKE!!" Naruto called after him, but by that time, Sasuke was out of earshot. Sasuke was the least of his worries right now. Naruto turned back to Sakura, still cold and losing blood. He heard an irritant buzzing noise. A bug flew past his nose. He tried to swish it away, but it avoided his hand.

"Naruto!"

"Huh?"

Behind him, Aburame Shino, Hyuuga Hinata and Temari, carrying Gaara on her back, came over to where he was with Sakura.

"What happened here?" Shino asked.

"...a fight..." Naruto answered.

"W-what happened t-to S-Sakura-chan?" Hinata shivered as she saw Sakura losing blood.

"..." Naruto wouldn't answer the question. Instead, he asked, "Is Gaara all right, Temari?"

"He's fine, Naruto. He's awake, but a little drained of energy," Temari answered, "He's needs rest. We all do."

"...why didn't I listen to her?"

"Hmm?"

"Why did I have to be so stubborn? I was so pumped on taking on Sasuke that I lost track of everything else. And now, she's being taken away from me," Naruto cried, "She can't go. She means more to me than my dream of becoming Hokage..."

"Naruto, you're not a healer..." Shino said.

"Healer?" Naruto repeated. He suddenly knew what could save his Sakura-chan. He got up and placed her on his back, "Come on, we don't have time to waste!"

"What? W-where are you going, N-Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked.

"I have to find Tsunade! She's the only one who can help Sakura-chan now! Come on, we have to find her!" Naruto said. The others nodded and immediately leapt off to find the newest Hokage.

"What about Jiraiya?" Temari asked.

"Forget him! He'll be fine!" Naruto said, "He's one of the Legendary Leaf Shinobi! Just help me get to Tsunade!"

"Right!" they all agreed.

_Hang in there, Sakura-chan, _Naruto thought, _You can't leave me. I swear, you'll be all right. We just need to get to Tsunade. Please, don't leave me. I can't let you go. No, I can't. I won't! Just stay, please. Stay with me, Sakura-chan. Please..._

_Stay with me..._

* * *

Uchiha Sasuke was running through the bushes. He couldn't believe that he had done that. He had almost certainly killed one of his teammates. Why? Why did he do it? Why did he use his power against someone he cared about?

It was because he had it.

He had the power. He could feel it flowing through his veins. It was so incredible. He couldn't get enough of it. His chakra had expanded exponentially. His Sharingan had unlocked a mind technique, the very same as Itachi's. He had tested it on Akamaru and Kiba. He didn't care as much for them, so he thought it was fine. He had grown blind and arrogant while he had the power. He challenged Naruto and Gaara to the fight, and when he pushed Naruto over the edge, he got the beating of his life.

Why, why, why did he use his power against Haruno Sakura?

He thought she was an enemy. He couldn't see clearly, so he waited until the time was right, then struck the enemy through. He didn't see what he did until it was too late. He couldn't bear it. He had taken his teammate's life. Why did he?

He could hear a kind of voice while he had the power. It sounded like someone he knew, but couldn't quite put his finger on...

The voice was telling him to do all those things. To test his power on Kiba and Akamaru. To challenge Naruto and Gaara to the fight at sunrise. To strike Sakura through. It was the voice that came with the power that made him do all the things he just did. And it was still there, taunting Sasuke.

Telling him he enjoyed what he did.

_No! I didn't like what I did! _Sasuke thought, _You're a liar! I thought the power was great, and I finally had enough to take on Itachi, but it's not!_

_**You know you enjoyed it.**_

_No!! Why are you inside me? Why did you tell me to do all those things?_

_**I was merely relaying all the things you wanted to do, but never could. You wanted the dog to shut up, so you shut him up. You wanted to take on two of your rivals, so you did. You wanted to stop the enemy that was holding you, so you struck it through.**_

_I didn't know I was hurting my friends! This is all your fault this happened!!_

_**No, Sasuke. You did all those things. I had no part in it. You took the initiative to make those actions a reality, I merely told you what you wanted to do with the power you gained.**_

_This isn't true!! It's your fault!! Who are you?!_

_**The you inside you. The inner you. The true you that has been unleashed through the scroll.**_

_The scroll!!_

_**Don't you remember the title? "How to Unleash Your True Potential?" It wasn't just your power. It was also the inside of you. The suppressed side you kept buried deep down. In a way, I'm the real you. You've set me free by reading the scroll and doing what it told you to do. I'm the you who secretly craves the thrill of battle. I'm the you who wants to avenge your family. I'm the you who is jealous of Itachi and all his power.**_

_You can't be me! There can't be two mes!!_

_**Oh, but there is. One of us is the one who puts on the side the world sees, and the other is the real inner you. Can you guess which is which?**_

_Get out of my head!! NOW!!!_

_**I can't leave you because I am you. The real you. The you who wanted all those things done. And you know you liked what happened when you did all those things. Fracturing minds. Taking on rivals. Striking through enemies.**_

_I said, "Get out!!"_

_**I can't. I won't. I'm going to stay inside you. Forever and ever.**_

_NNNNNOOOOO!!!!_

_**Ha ha ha...HA HA HA...HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!!!**_

"AAAAAAGHHHHH!!!"

Uchiha Sasuke leapt through the forest screaming, continually being tortured by what was apparently the real him. He didn't want to believe it, but when he searched his heart, he knew it was true. He did partially enjoy all those things. And it was his fault for all of it. Kiba and Akamaru's minds fractured. Fighting against Gaara and Naruto. Striking Sakura through. It was all his fault.

And no matter how much he pleaded, the real him wouldn't leave him alone.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

Well, that's another chapter done. Sorry the wait was long, but I hope it was worth it for all of you. We get closer and closer to the long awaited unleashing of Kyubi, the identity of the monster and the monster showdown to decide the fate of the ninja world. But there should be plenty of things to keep you occupied until then. Will Naruto and the others find Tsunade in time to save Sakura? Is there really a technique that will help the Hokage tame Kyubi? And what will become of Sasuke and this new, inner him? There is only one way to find out...review!!


	10. Bonds

Disclaimer: Once again, I do not own the characters of Naruto. Enough of this, you know what you came for. Let us continue this ongoing story…

**Kyubi Unleashed**

**By DigiScanner-Shonen**

**Chapter 10: Bonds**

"Look at the size of that thing!"

"Sssh! Keep quiet!"

"Sorry, commander."

Three of Tsunade's bodyguards, who had escorted her to the Kage Council, were sent to check on the progress of the monster that originated from the Cloud Country. It had only appeared a few days ago, but it was already at the gate of the Leaf Country.

"I don't believe it! I didn't think there'd be another one of those things!" the other shinobi said.

"There are a bunch of those things out there. Kyubi was one, this is just another," the commander said.

"How many are out there?"

"Last I checked there were hundreds…"

"Hundreds!?"

"Ssssh!! Moron!" the second bodyguard told the first.

"Jeez…hundreds…if they ever decided to come together, we're screwed…"

"That's why some of them have been tamed," the commander told his subordinates.

"Tamed?" the second shinobi asked.

"Some of the monsters have been tamed to serve the ninja throughout the world. Such as Gama-Bunta, Jiraiya-sama's summoning partner, or Kyubi, in the case of our blonde-headed moron of a ninja, Uzumaki. The monsters can be helpful against opponents of powerful caliber or against other monsters. Only powerful shinobi like Jiraiya-sama and Hokage-sama can maintain control over them, however."

"Wow…"

"Isn't that what Hokage-sama told the Kage Council?" the first shinobi asked.

"Yes," the commander told them, "That's why we're out here at the border, checking on the monster's progress. We need to determine how close it is to Konohagakure and how much time Hokage-sama needs to unleash Kyubi."

"Judging from where it is, sir," the second ninja said, looking out from the tree where they were perched, "I think it'll take about a day."

"I suggest we head back to record the progress, sir," the first suggested.

"No, not yet. We also need to see what it can do."

"Are you sure?"

"We'll see what happens when it reaches the borderline…"

The monstrosity had just come up to a giant wall with watchtowers every sixty feet, the borderline of the Leaf Country. Around it were many ninjas, who had spotted the monster and were preparing for combat. One of them, possibly the captain of the station, shouted out some orders and about twenty shinobi guards rushed out toward the monster. They weren't fifteen yards away when the monster seemed to draw in its breath and then let out a loud noise directed at the ninja. All twenty were sent reeling back into the border's wall. Hard.

"It can do that?" the first shinobi bodyguard asked.

"I don't think that's all," the commander said as he held up his hand to keep the ninja quiet.

The captain of the station called out something else and about sixty shinobi took out weapons from wherever they had hidden them on their bodies and fired them at the monster, just one hundred yards from the borderline. The weapons hit, but it didn't even begin to faze the monster. It crouched down and then leapt toward the ninja with great speed. Before anyone could blink, it was just several feet from the border and shinobi everywhere were either being beaten from the monster, running from their posts or seized in a state of fear.

Several of the ninja who had not been hurt by the monster yet had taken to the top of the watchtowers and aimed several cannons mounted just on the roof towards the beast. They fired their ammunition at it, but it avoided all the shots before baring its teeth and crunching on the towers, one by one.

"Oh Lord…" the commander gasped.

The monster finished snacking on the towers and began to demolish the entire wall with its claws. A few minutes later and there was a gigantic hole in the border to the Leaf Country. All shinobi were dead, evacuated or sending out an emergency call to Konohagakure.

"Should we go now?" the first shinobi asked in a terrified tone.

"I actually agree, sir. We should go now before…" the second started, but never got to finish. The monster's ears had perked and it faced the direction of the hidden shinobi.

It had spotted them.

"Oh…shit…"

"P-permission t-to run, s-sir?" the first shinobi asked.

"Permission granted! RUN!!"

The three of them darted off like thieves in the night, fleeing for their very lives. The monster was tracking their every move, enjoying the hunt for prey. Keeping their eyes focused on the path to take, the shinobi bodyguards could still hear the sound of the monster coming ever closer to them. The farther they ran, the closer the monster got. Until suddenly, the sound stopped altogether.

Nervous, the shinobi quickly looked back to see if it was still there. Their hearts pounding, they looked upon empty space, ruined by the tracks of the monster. Trees toppled, earth turned up, and just a hint of large tracks made by the beast. The three of them looked uncertainly at each other, then seemed to breathe a small sigh of relief. They turned to face forward and continue their journey…

And the last thing they saw was a giant rim of teeth chomp down on them.

* * *

_Hold on, Sakura-chan…_

"Can't you move any faster?!"

"We're trying, Naruto."

"Well, put the lead out!! We have no time for dilly-dallying!!"

Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura, Hyuuga Hinata, Aburame Shino, Temari and Gaara were leaping through Konohagakure, searching for the recently selected Hokage. Naruto carried a bleeding Sakura on his back while Temari managed to keep Gaara a little on her back. They were retreating from the showdown that had taken place between Naruto, Gaara and the sole survivor of the terrible Uchiha clan massacre, Uchiha Sasuke. The battle had ended as a power-mad Sasuke impaled Sakura as she tried to calm Naruto who had let the fox spirit inside take over him. Sakura was bleeding to death and the only one who could possibly save her was Tsunade, the new Hokage.

Naruto couldn't understand what Sasuke meant by someone lying to him. He had concluded that Sasuke was probably breaking down after seeing his comrade most certainly killed by his own hand. But, he wasn't going to forgive Sasuke that easily for doing what he did. How could he kill someone who cared about him a great deal?

_If she dies, Sasuke, I will make your life a living hell. I swear it,_ Naruto thought as they continued to search the village. He'd worry about Sasuke later; right now Sakura was the important thing. She meant everything to him and to lose her would be losing a big part of himself. _Please hold on, Sakura-chan. I'll find Tsunade for you. You'll be okay, I promise. Just stay with me for now. If only I knew where she'd be right now! She's a medical ninja, stuff like this is her…that's it!!_

"Shino!!" Naruto called back.

"Yeah?" the boy from clan Aburame asked.

"You told me that Kiba was hospitalised when Sasuke attacked him yesterday, right!?"

"Yeah…"

"Tsunade could be at the hospital! She's a special medical ninja! She's bound to be there!"

"No, she wouldn't!"

"What!?" Naruto demanded.

"She left for a conference a few days ago! Something about a monster from the Cloud Country…"

_So that's why the stupid fox was so uptight lately! It must've sensed the monster!_ Naruto thought. "Did she say when she'd be back?"

"Well, I think she'd be back today."

"H-how do you know this, Shino-kun?" Hinata asked.

"My dad's kind of a link in running the village. Plus we're the bug-using clan, remember? It's not our fault if an insect overhears a conversation and happens to buzz to one of us and tell us the conversation…"

"Is your father a politician or an eavesdropper?!" Temari asked.

"Both. Hold on a sec…" Shino said as he darted his head to the side and saw an insect buzz past.

"Forget it, Shino! We have to find old hag Tsunade! Now!!" Naruto called back.

"Give me five seconds with this one…"

"We have no time, Aburame!!"

"N-Naruto-kun…" Hinata began.

"What, Hinata!?" Naruto yelled as he turned to the Hyuuga heir, not knowing he had scared her with his angry face, "I've no time for this shit!!"

"S-Shino-kun can t-talk to bugs…"

"What's so important about that?" Temari asked.

"The b-bugs see a lot of th-things. Maybe it's s-seen Ho-Hokage-sama…"

A beam of hope shone into Naruto's clouded mind. Maybe it did see Tsunade and it'd be that much easier to find her. Or it didn't and they'd be wasting time. Naruto would take anything he could get if it meant helping his Sakura-chan.

"Well, well?! Did it see Tsunade or not!?" Naruto asked impatiently.

"Yeah! She's at the Konoha Archives!"

"Let's move!!" Naruto screamed as the group about faced and headed in the direction of the archives. _Just a little further, just a little longer. Please hear me, Sakura-chan. Don't you dare leave me yet! Keep holding on! Just keep holding on to me and what we have together! Stay with me just a while longer._

_I promise you'll be all right._

* * *

"What did it look like again, Takeshi?" 

"It was a small red scroll, Tsunade."

"There are a bunch of small red scrolls here! Don't you have more details?"

"No…"

The newest Hokage and one of her bodyguards/friends had been given access to the Konoha Archives' restricted section. They were searching for several scrolls, which would help them unleash and control the monster inside the boy Uzumaki Naruto, the nine-tailed fox monster known as Kyubi. Two of them they had found: the scroll to unseal the seal that imprisoned the monster and the other with a list of the ninja world's monsters. The scroll they were searching for now was something that could help them control Kyubi and make it fight for them against the coming monster.

With the third scroll, they were having no such luck as to even locating it.

"What technique is inside the scroll?" the Hokage asked.

"I remember it to be a kind of bondage technique. I've only seen it be done once, but even then its difficult."

"How does it work?"

"I can't quite remember that part, but I'll know it when I see it."

"Just let me know if you find it!" Tsunade said as she handed him a giant pile of small red scrolls and took a couple for herself, "Start reading!"

Takeshi and Tsunade began scrolling through the scrolls, looking for the technique Takeshi knew that could help them control Kyubi. There were tons of forbidden techniques that any shinobi from neighbouring countries would love to get their hands on, but none of them seemed to be the ones they needed.

"Chakra raiding…kamikaze attacks…mind invasion…" Takeshi read off of his scrolls.

"Transformations…spirit switches…armouring…" Tsunade read of off her scrolls.

"Wow, so many forbidden jutsus…Wait a second!"

"You found it?"

"Maybe…YES!! This is it!!"

"Let me take a look at that scroll, Takeshi," the Hokage said as her subordinate passed the scroll containing the technique. After looking over it, her eyes widened a bit, "This is…this was the jutsu?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama."

"When did you see it happen?"

"Out on a mission after Orochimaru's attack on the village. Our team was ambushed en route to the Earth Country and our leader used this attack on one of the enemies. After using it, he executed a number of other jutsus to cease the opponent's actions. We took him as a prisoner along on our mission until its unsuccessful end when both he and our commander were executed by one of the village leaders."

"Did he know how dangerous this technique is?" the Hokage inquired.

"I'm sure he did."

"This could work, but the consequences for Naruto could be dangerous…"

"It's this or we trust Kyubi to do our bidding willingly."

Tsunade knew the chances of that were slim to none.

"All right. I'll use this jutsu when I unleash Kyubi. It'll take me a while to memorise though…"

"TSUNADE!!!!" a voice suddenly cried out.

"What was that?!" Takeshi asked as he withdrew a kunai knife, prepared to defend his superior.

"Hey! You can't go in there!!" Tsunade heard several voices say as a few figures rushed forward from where they were standing towards the archive entrance.

"Get out of my way!!" the voice replied, "NOW!!"

"We can't let you through, Uzumaki. It's the rules."

"Screw the rules! I need to see Tsunade! It's life or death!! Now get out of the way!!"

"We can't let you in here, Uzumaki."

"Temari!!"

There was a large gust of wind from the front entrance as the figures guarding the archives were sent flying back and six Genin, four of Konohagakure and two of Sunagakure, flew through the library of scrolls calling for Tsunade. The Hokage and her bodyguard managed to stick their heads out of the restricted section and one of the Genin saw them and he called over the others.

"Tsunade!!" Naruto cried as he landed from a tall bookcase.

_Naruto!!_ Tsunade thought, _Perfect timing, kid! I thought we'd have to scourge the village for you._

"That's Hokage to you, Uzumaki," Tsunade said as she looked around at the junior shinobi, most promptly noticing Gaara and Temari, "What are those two doing here?"

"Never mind that! You've got to help Sakura-chan!!" Naruto said as he lifted Haruno Sakura off his back, showing her to the Hokage, "She's bleeding bad! You've got to save her!!"

Tsunade bent down and examined Sakura. Her expression went from concern to fear.

"She's lost a lot of blood. My medical jutsus won't be enough. We have to get her into the hospital."

"Then let's move!!" Naruto said as he took Sakura back onto his back and the ninjas moved to leave, "I can't let her die! I won't!!"

"Takeshi! Gather the scrolls and meet me in Konoha Hospital at eleven o'clock," the Hokage instructed.

"Yes, Hokage-sama," he replied.

"Let's go!!"

With that, the six Genin and the Hokage were off with great speed to the hospital to save the life of Uzumaki Naruto's girlfriend.

* * *

"I hate it…the waiting…" 

Naruto and the others were sitting outside, waiting as Tsunade checked on Sakura. Gaara had regained consciousness; so Shusaku no longer tried to break out, Hinata fiddled with her fingers, Temari stared at the door, Shino had gone to get a drink of water and Naruto sat on the edge, tapping his feet impatiently, praying that Sakura would be okay.

"We all hate it, Naruto," Temari said.

"S-Sakura-chan w-will be all right. Y-you'll s-see…" Hinata tried to comfort Naruto, but she didn't have a lot of hope in her voice.

"I just wish Tsunade would get out of there and tell me if she's alright," Naruto growled, "What's taking her so long? I can't bear being out here waiting for her verdict."

"She'll be fine, Naruto," Temari told him, "She'll be fine."

"Yeah, in your opinion, maybe…I just wish they'd hurry this up…"

"Naruto…" Gaara began.

"Hmm?"

"She's precious to you, isn't she?"

"…yeah…"

"Tell me…how did she become this way to you?"

Naruto paused and closed his eyes. Leaning his head back against the wall, he seemed to be remembering something.

"It was when we were seven, just starting Ninja Academy. I didn't have anybody to care for me back then, so I became class clown, trying to win people's attention. We were practising a new jutsu that Iruka-sensei had demonstrated in the classroom," Naruto told them, "Naturally, I blew at it, just trying to get a laugh. Then, I tried it for real. It blew up in my face. I tried again and again to get it right, but it wouldn't work. They kept laughing at me, but I didn't want them to. I ran out of the room and sat in the hallway, crying my heart out and hoping no one could hear me."

"Naruto-kun…" Hinata sympathised. As she said this, Shino returned from his drink and said down with the others.

"It was a few minutes later that she came. She sat down beside and asked me what was wrong. I told her I was a screw-up and could never get anything right," Naruto's voice began to crack, "I told her it only got worse because I didn't have anyone, no parents or friends to help me along. That all I was doing was for attention because I was so lonely. People all throughout Konohagakure hated me and I didn't know why, even the kids. I thought maybe I could win the other kids over by being the clown and maybe they'd tell the adults and I'd finally get some respect or attention…"

"Then, she told me that she'd be my friend. She said I didn't have to be a clown to gain her attention, respect or friendship. She was wearing a flower in her hair that day. It was a special cherry blossom that grew only that time of year. She gave it to me as a token of friendship. Then, she went back inside and told me to come back in when I felt like it. I was so happy…I finally had a friend…"

Naruto began to cry a little as he told them his story. Hinata started to reach out to touch his shoulder, but then thought she'd best leave him be.

"As we grew up together, I felt something stir in my heart. It got stronger over the many days and months. It was love, I'm sure of it. I realised that I loved Sakura. Since we've become Team 7, I've always wanted her to feel about me the same way I feel about her. And just a couple days ago we've gotten together. Having her with me is almost better than being Hokage…"

Naruto cried openly now, with his sobs and sorrows loud enough for all to hear. "She's being taken away from me because I didn't listen to her about Sasuke. I don't want her to leave! She's everything to me! I can't let her go! I won't!!"

"…you told me once…" Gaara whispered.

"Naruto said what?" Temari asked.

"You told me that those important to you acknowledged your existence and saved you from the hell of being alone. Since you don't have any parents…and Sakura was your first friend…I can understand you, Uzumaki Naruto. I feel the same way about Temari and Kankuro."

"Y-you do!?"

"Since that day…"

Before Gaara could finish, Tsunade came through the doors and the young shinobi gathered around her. Naruto almost totally forgot about crying for Sakura as the Hokage emerged from the examination room.

"Well?!! Is she…gonna be okay?!" Naruto grabbed Tsunade and looked directly in her eyes, hoping for some sign of Sakura's well being. He searched and searched Tsunade's eyes…

…and found none.

"She's lost a lot of blood…" Tsunade started.

"No…" Naruto cried.

"I've done all I can do. The wound's too deep for my medical jutsu…"

"This isn't happening…"

"I'm so sorry, Naruto…" Tsunade tried to put her hand on Naruto's shoulder, but he slapped it away with his own and looked down at the ground. His tears fell upon the ground, staining the floor. The group tried to fight back their own tears, but found they couldn't and let their tears join Naruto's.

"…she's leaving me…"

"Hokage-sama!!" a voice called from across the hall. A figure dashed up to the small group, now disheartened from losing a friend, "Tsunade!!"

"Takeshi…what is it?"

"I've received word from the…what happened? What's wrong?"

"My girlfriend is…" Naruto sobbed, "She's not going to make it…"

"…I'm so sorry," Takeshi began, but suddenly remembered, "Hold on! There might be a way to save her!"

"WHAT!?"

"Tsunade, remember the scrolls we found?"

"Yes, what about them?" the Hokage questioned.

"Remember that forbidden technique we found?"

"Yes…"

"We can use it to revive the girl!"

"You can?" Tsunade asked, but suddenly caught on to what Takeshi was saying, "…oh. I see!"

"What? What? Can you save Sakura-chan?" Naruto inquired.

"I think we might be able to, Naruto. Give me the scroll, Takeshi. I need to look it over again," Tsunade took the scroll from her bodyguard and reread the jutsu, "Yes, yes. I see where you're going with this. But we'll need someone who's a fast healer. With my regeneration jutsu, I should be able to…"

"Give me that!!" Naruto grabbed the scroll from Tsunade and read it over, "…yeah, yeah…that seal and that one…jutsu name…okay!!"

Naruto threw down the scroll and ran into the examination room.

"Naruto-kun!!" Hinata called out, "What are you doing!?"

"Get back here, Naruto!!" Tsunade yelled as the shinobi dashed into the examination room and saw Naruto standing over Sakura on an operating table, performing hand seals, "Naruto, wait!! You don't know what'll happen if you use it!!"

"Bondage!!" Naruto shouted as he placed his right hand on Sakura's chest, they both glew white and a flow of chakra was exchanged between the two. The exchange was quickly over and Naruto began to choke. Reaching with his left hand for his chest to try and stop it, he coughed up blood and collapsed on the floor.

"Naruto-kun!!" Hinata screamed in horror.

"Naruto!!" Tsunade screamed as she went to check on him. She checked his pulse, felt the coldness of his face and opened his jacket and lifted his shirt to see if his heart was still beating. She was shocked at what she saw in his chest area. In the same place with the same wound Haruno Sakura had, Uzumaki Naruto now shared with her, "He has the same wound as Sakura! He's bleeding to death!!"

"No!! Naruto-kun!!"

"Why would the idiot do something like that?" Shino asked.

"Didn't he read the fine print of the jutsu?" Temari asked.

Gaara simply looked at both Naruto and Sakura's bodies.

"N-now N-Naruto-kun's g-going t-to…" Hinata sobbed.

"Wait…" Gaara held up his hand to halt everyone. He came closer to Naruto's body, bent down and examined the area, "He's healing…"

"Wh-wh-what…!?"

"Uzumaki's doing what?!" Shino asked in disbelief.

"He's healing…" Tsunade repeated as she watched Naruto's wound slowly become healed up. Remembering the effects of the jutsu, Tsunade got up and went over to Sakura's body, still resting on the table. She noticed something about Sakura's wound, "She's healing too…"

"H-how is this…?" Temari questioned.

_Kyubi!_ Tsunade thought as she looked back at Naruto on the floor, _I should've known! Jiraiya once told me that whenever Naruto would become injured, Kyubi's powers would allow Naruto to heal quickly. He's doing that now! He must've known something like this was happening and when he read the technique…you idiot! You knew this would happen, didn't you?_

Naruto's wound was completely healed and in a moment, he stirred from the floor and opened his eyes.

"Did it…did it work?" Naruto asked. He didn't wait for an answer as he picked himself up off the ground and went over to Sakura, "Sakura-chan…?"

Sakura slowly opened her eyes, looking around at everyone who was in disbelief in her return from the dead.

"N-Naruto-kun…"

"H-hey…" Naruto whimpered. He was so happy to see her alive in well. His gamble paid off. He took a hold of Sakura and pulled her into a hug, letting some tears of happiness escape, "I thought you were…"

"I thought so too…until you helped me back…" Sakura returned the hug with equal emotion. The other shinobi in the room all looked on with happiness in their faces and awe at the reunion of Naruto and Sakura.

_I'm so happy for you, Naruto. I truly am, _Tsunade thought as she looked on, _I only wish that I'd known a technique like this existed sooner. Maybe then, on that day, Dan would've…_

"Tsunade-sama!"

"Yes, Takeshi?" Tsunade asked as she was stirred from her thoughts.

"I came to give you word on the progression of the monster. It's broken through the country border."

"What!?"

"From the notice I received, it'll be here by tomorrow morning."

"And the shinobi who were at the border defending our country? The bodyguards I dispatched?"

"…wiped out…"

"Dammit. This is not good…" Tsunade clenched her fist.

"If there is a time to act, Tsunade, it should be now."

"Right," Tsunade looked over at Naruto and Sakura hugging and it almost tore her heart knowing what she had to do, "Naruto!"

"What?" Naruto turned to face the Hokage, reluctantly breaking off the hug.

"…I need you to come with me right now."

"Now? But what about Sakura-chan?"

"She'll be fine without you for a few minutes. Now come on."

"Fine…" Naruto growled and followed Tsunade and Takeshi outside the room. Once the doors to the examination room were closed, he asked, "What is it? What's wrong?"

"Naruto…something's about to happen to the village."

"What? What's going to happen?"

"A monster has just been detected terrorising the shinobi world, coming from the Cloud Country. We don't know how it got here, or who let it in, but it's destroying homes, murdering people and causing unrest in our world."

"Monster…?" Naruto asked as he moved his hand to rest on his torso where the seal of Kyubi would usually appear when Kyubi's power would slip through, "Oh, yeah. I almost forgot about it…"

"You know about this?" Takeshi asked.

"It's been a few days now and…its just a feeling I've had. Something deep inside," Naruto said as he wanted to tell them about Kyubi, but remembered the hatred everyone had for it.

"The monster will reach Konohagakure tomorrow morning. We may not survive the encounter…" Tsunade continued.

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Uzumaki Naruto…we need your help."

"You need…my help?"

"Yes."

Naruto couldn't believe it. The Hokage was asking him for _his_ help. Not a Jounin, or a Chuunin or another Genin, _him._ He was needed. They needed his help. This was something Naruto thought he'd never hear.

_All right!! _Naruto cheered inside his mind, _The Hokage needs my help, not anyone else's, MINE!! This is perfect! This is my big chance to finally get everyone to give me some respect! Sakura-chan will flip when she hears this!_

"So…uh…what do you need me to help with?" Naruto tried to ask nonchalantly, but was failing with the big grin on his face.

"We need you to ask something of someone," Takeshi answered.

"That's it!? Come on! Give me something better! Like, I don't know, my own cell to command? Or send me on surveillance to see this monster? Or maybe…"

"Naruto, we need you to talk to Kyubi," Tsunade interrupted.

"Wh-what?" Naruto's eyes went wide.

"Kyubi's the only one who can stop the monster approaching. We need you to negotiate with it so we can unleash it from you and let it combat the monster."

"That's it…? That's all you want me for? To serve as the link to the only thing that can save Konoha Village? That's bull! I thought this would be my one chance to finally earn the respect of everyone in the village by doing some great heroic act, but to just serve as messenger?! That's complete and total bull!!"

"Naruto…We really need Kyubi's help for this. But in a way, we also need your help badly. Please, Naruto…" Tsunade stared straight into Naruto's eyes, pleading for his help.

"…"

"I'll make it worth your while…"

"How so?"

"You'll just have to find out after this is all over."

"I'll see what I can do…" Naruto said as he motioned for Tsunade and Takeshi to give him some room. Closing his eyes, Naruto ventured deep into his inner self, searching for the one that shared his body…

* * *

"_Hey stupid fox! You here?" Naruto asked as he approached a large gate with a seal in front of it from the inside of his mind. Two large red eyes and a giant rim of large teeth appeared from behind the large gate. Beyond that, the rest of Kyubi couldn't be seen._

"_**What do you want?**" the beast growled._

"_Old hag Tsunade needs our help to save the village."_

"_**SAVE?! WHY SHOULD I SAVE THOSE WHO IMPRISONED ME?!**" Kyubi's voice boomed._

"_There's another monster heading this way and she says the only one who can stop it is you. I know you've been sensing it for days now."_

"_**That I have…he's come back out…**"_

"_He!?"_

"_**Yes…but as far as I'm concerned, you Leafs deserve it for imprisoning me in you, kid.**"_

"_But he'll destroy everything! The other shinobi, the village, Sakura-chan…"_

"_**Not my problem. Why don't you just ask the Forth Hokage to seal it up in some other kid's body?**"_

"…_because he's dead."_

"_**Of course! At least when I was sealed up in you, I took his life in the process. I bet all the Leafs are crying their little hearts out!**"_

"_We've gotten over it."_

"_**So why did your 'old hag Tsunade' send you here?**"_

"_She needs me to ask you for your help to fight the monster."_

"_**She obviously must know my response. Isn't giving you power so you can fight enough? What else do they want!?**"_

"_We want you to fight the monster yourself! Tsunade will undo the seal and you'll be let back into the world."_

"…_**what?**"_

"_You heard me! She'll take off the seal and you'll be unleashed from my body so you can fight the monster!"_

"_**She really expects me to just fight it and she'll let me back into the world? Don't you know what I'm thinking about as soon as I get back outside? I'll destroy all of you! In fact, I'll team up with the monster and kill every single one of you!!**"_

"_If you try and harm anyone in this village, especially Sakura-chan, I will not forgive you."_

"_**Why should I care, idiot? I can kill you in one stroke as soon as I get back outside!**"_

"_I told this to Gaara, and I'll tell this to you. The people in this village have saved me from the hell of being alone. Ever since I found out about you, everyone's hated me worse than ever. But I've slowly been building relationships with others. Iruka-sensei…Hinata…Gaara…Sakura-chan…Everyone in the village…They're all important to me! They're helping me out of the pitch black hell that was my loneliness!" Naruto screamed at Kyubi._

"**…**"

"_I will protect those precious to me from things like you that seek to harm them! If you lay one claw on any of them, I will never forgive you. If you harm any of them, I will stop you…even if it means I'll die in the process. I swear on it, I will stop you…"_

"_**I'm too powerful for you. You couldn't make a dent in me even if you tried.**"_

"_I said 'I will stop you'. I don't take back my words. That's my ninja way…"_

"_**...hmph…The two of you…you and the Forth Hokage…you're too alike…**"_

"…_!"_

"_**All right, kid…I'll help you out…**"_

"_Thanks…I'll go tell Tsunade," Naruto said as he turned to leave._

_**The kid shares a lot of the qualities of the Forth Hokage, **Kyubi thought, **If the Hokage could see him now…Okay, fine. I'll help him out with this monster. After all, he and I have a score to settle. But after that's over, the kid and all his friends are going down! I'll teach them to seal one of the most powerful monsters in the shinobi world into the body of a mere child!!**_

* * *

"Kyubi accepts," Naruto told the Hokage and Takeshi as he opened his eyes, "I'm surprised he'd help us out after what the Forth did to him." 

"You're not the only one, kid," Takeshi said.

"Okay, so we've got Kyubi's help. We have less than twenty-four hours to unleash Kyubi. Takeshi, go set everything up for the unleashing," the Hokage told him.

"Immediately, Tsunade-sama," Takeshi left the group.

"I guess I better go tell Sakura-chan about what's going on," Naruto said as he turned to go back to see his girlfriend.

Tsunade put her hand on Naruto's shoulder to stop him. "No, Naruto. If we can stop this monster before it enters Konohagakure, we can avoid mass panic and have the entire village turn against us."

"…right."

"Don't tell Sakura or the others anything. Consider this an order from the Hokage. Disobeying it means…"

"Yeah, yeah. I've heard about what can happen if you disobey a direct order."

"Other than that, go on. Your girlfriend needs you," Tsunade said as she removed her hand and Naruto went back inside to see Sakura and the others.

_Things are going without a hitch, _the Hokage thought, _I'm surprised things are working out for this. But there are two things bothering me. Kyubi agreed to help us after Naruto asked him. The nine-tails wouldn't just help us like that; he holds a grudge against Konohagakure and its people. We have the scrolls necessary to control him, but it still makes me uneasy._

_The second is that Kyubi's lived inside Naruto for too long. Naruto's become dependant on him. Kyubi is an actual part of Naruto. Separating the two could lead to death for Naruto. As long as I have the Bondage jutsu, Naruto should be fine, but I doubt that it'll work between two different species._

_If I unleash Kyubi, will he keep his word? And if I do unleash him, will Naruto survive?_

The more Tsunade thought about what was going to happen, the more thoughts and doubts were raised.

* * *

Inside the examination room, Naruto was helping Sakura up from the table as the others backed away from them. 

"Hinata, we have to go check on Kiba and Akamaru," Shino said to his teammate.

"Oh, right!" Hinata remembered as she and Shino headed for the door, "B-Bye Naruto-kun, S-Sakura-chan."

"Later, Hinata," Naruto waved as the two Genin left the room, "Sakura-chan, do you feel all right?"

"Of course! I've never felt better! But something's bothering me…about Sasuke-kun…"

"Oh yeah. Sasuke…" Naruto growled, remembering who almost killed Sakura, "I swear when I see him, I'm gonna…"

"Naruto-kun? What did Hokage-sama say to you?"

"…" Naruto looked away from Sakura.

"What did she say?"

"Just some stuff about the village," Gaara immediately replied.

"G-Gaara? You heard what Tsunade said to me?" Naruto asked.

"Every last word."

"…"

"Sakura, why don't we leave the boys alone?" Temari suggested as she took Sakura away from the boys, "I bet your folks are worried sick about you. I mean, you snuck away from your home just to see the fight."

"Oh, yeah. They must be searching high and low for me," Sakura said as they left.

With Temari and Sakura gone, Gaara and Naruto could now talk openly.

"You heard everything," Naruto said.

"Yes," Gaara repeated.

"You know what's going to happen tomorrow morning."

"I've known about it since I left Sunagakure."

"How?"

"When you go from place to place, you hear things."

"You know why I have to keep it secret from the others, right?"

"Of course. I won't tell anyone, but I know that the monsters within us wouldn't just agree to help us like that. I think Kyubi's up to something."

"I told him not to bother because I would stop him if he hurt anyone in the village."

"Just be careful on what you're doing, Naruto. True that Kyubi is one of the most powerful monsters in the ninja world, but it's also been known as one of the most ruthless. I'll be there at the unsealing to make sure that he doesn't get out of hand."

"How can you do that?"

"I definitely need to catch up on my sleep…"

Naruto caught on to what Gaara was saying, but then thought about it. "But if you do that, we'll have three monsters to deal with! The entire ninja world could be destroyed if Kyubi, Shusaku and that other monster ever decided to band together!"

"Then you better pray that Kyubi does what is asked of it, Uzumaki," Gaara told Naruto as he headed for the door.

"Gaara…can you do me a favour?"

"What?"

"Can you come with me to see Sasuke? I have a score to settle with him for impaling Sakura-chan."

"…but why?"

"He said something weird at the end of the battle. Something about someone lying to him…"

"Of course," Gaara agreed as they left the room and exited the hospital to look for Sasuke. Naruto had to talk to Sasuke about what he did to Sakura. He had a score to settle within the next twenty-four hours.

Because after those hours were up, the largest battle that Konohagakure would ever see would begin…

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

Sorry it's late, guys! I meant to update last month, but I got side-tracked with school and such. However, I'll be back to monthly updating next month. Plus, it's been almost a year since "Kyubi Unleashed" started. For the anniversary, could two chapters be released for February? Only time, and reviews, will tell…


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